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The Rationale of 
Investment 



IN 



ZINC 
MINING 




BY 

OTTO RUHL 




Copyrights 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 



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THE 



Rationale of Investment 



IN 



Zinc Mining 




BY 



OTTO RUHL, M. S. 




COPYRIGHTED 1910 BY OTTO RUHL 



MINING NEWS CO. rf£jfjjij%c > 3 JOPLIN, MISSOURI 



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Outline Map of Joplin District 




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INDEX 

CHAPTER PAGE 

I Importance of the Zinc Industry 7 

II Solidarity of the Zinc Mining Industry - - 12 

III Profits in Zinc Mining - 16 

IV Where Ores are Marketed Without Cost - 20 
V Zinc Ore Market made in Jopiin District - - 23 

VI Jopiin District Needs Capital - - - 26 

VII Zinc Mining Offers Opportunities to Poor Man - 30 

VIII Zinc Mining Offers Wide Range of Investment - 33 

IX Confidence of Old Investors in Zinc Mining - 37 

X "Investigate" is Password to Successful 

Investment ------ 40 

XI All Blind Investments are Risky - - 44 

XII Value of the Geologists' Work - - - - 47 

XIII Value of the Practical in Zinc Mining - - 50 
XIV Competent Mine Management Essential to 

Success - 53 

XV Royalty — a Question to be Solved - - 57 
XVI Importance of Lead Mining in Jopiin 

District - - - - 61 

XVII "Silicate" Mining is very Profitable - - - 64 

XVIII Sheet Ground Mining Eliminates Speculation - 67 
XIX Discovery of Deeper Ore Level Doubles 

District's Importance - - - - 70 

LOCATION OF TABLES 

Ten Years' Prices of Spelter - - - - - 29 

Jopiin Ore Production for Eleven Years - - - 52 

Jopiin Ore Prices for Eleven Years - - - - 56 



INTRODUCTION 

In the preparation of the chapters of this book 
which were originally written for publication and appeared 
as a running series in the Joplin Daily Globe, particular at- 
tention was given to a concise and yet comprehensive treat- 
ment of the various topics which enter into the merits of in- 
vestment in zinc mining. The various phases of investment 
were taken into account as fully as they suggested them- 
selves, not only from the point of view of the favorable im- 
pressions, but as far as possible from the critical point of 
view. It was recognized from the very start that every 
avenue of investment has its demerits as well as its merits 
and that often its demerits may be corrected if the real 
causes are fully recognized and the remedies known. 

The idea of collecting the whole series of articles sug- 
gested itself as perhaps furnishing the first attempt to 
place in a concise and readable manner not only the oppor- 
tunities that exist in the zinc industry, but in a small way 
the actual conditions that confront the industry's future. 
Some of the problems are here disclosed on parallel pages 
to the opportunities presented. Neither all of the oppor- 
tunities nor all of the problems are discussed but it is in- 
tended that the chapters contain the rudiments of a text 
book from the investment side of the industry. The var- 
ious kinds of mining, the conditions found in each instance, 
the best methods of management, the pitfalls to be encoun- 
tered, the processes that have proved successful for certain 
problems of mining, milling and management, are all 
touched upon, not with the idea of complete delineation but 
only suggestively and for the reading of the man who is 
searching for the suggestions which may help him in his 
own way of working out his own problems. It is also con- 
cise for the benefit of a busy public. The different topics 
are placed in chapters and the book indexed so that the busy 
man can turn to the particular topic in which he is interested. 

In addition to the method of treatment of the various 
phases of zinc mine investment, it has been the intention to 
scrupulously avoid any mistake in the statement of facts. The 
zinc industry has reached an importance which is amply 
sustained by the facts and for that reason it needs no em- 
bellishment but the plain truth. The industry has attained 
a dignity to which those in it must subscribe respect and 
any statements about its opportunities and its problems 
should be expressed plainly instead of in hyperbolic fancies. 

To the book are added tables showing the prices paid 
for ore and spelter for a period of years. A table is given 
also which shows the production and value of the Joplin 
District for a period of consecutive years. There is also a 
map indicating the respective centers of production in the 
states of Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma. 

Joplin, Mo.. Jan. 27, 1910. 



CHAPTER I 

IMPORTANCE OF THE ZINC INDUSTRY. 

A complete understanding of the importance of any 
industry by the men engaged in it, where the understand- 
ing is based entirely upon the real facts, instills a certain 
pride and confidence, not only in its leaders, but the very 
rank and file of its workers, which eventually gives greater 
efficiency and promotes its further growth. So long as an 
industry has in it the personal effort, the actual thoughts 
and deeds of men, the products of that industry inspire its 
workers with pride and zeal. From the first maker of 
Damascus steel to the present day the steel workers of the 
world have taken pride in their work and today no indus- 
try has more loyal workers. 

The zinc industry has been one of such rapid growth 
that those engaged in it have not as a whole grasped its 
real importance in the industrial world. Few people know 
that the production of spelter in the world in 1908 only 
lacked 17,000 tons of being equal to the world's production 
of copper. Yet everyone has been impressed with the 
importance of the copper industry. It is true that the 
value of the two outputs differed greatly, the copper value 
being practically three times as large, but the world's 
spelter value was equal to the astounding sum of $77,500,- 
000. The actual tonnage of spelter was 799,644 tons. This 
represented a decrease of almost two per cent from the 
previous year, which had been the record year. 

PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION INDICATES STANDING. 

A significant thing as showing the substantial founda- 
tion of the zinc industry lies in a study of the relation of 
the production to the consumption in 1908. This was a 
general panic year the world over, and spelter consump- 
tion was expected to fall off heavily. While production 
fell off practically 16 per cent in the United States con- 
sumption only fell off 6 per cent. Following the market 
features up through 1909, even with the report of a heavy 
surplus of metal on hand at the beginning of the year, 
before ten months had elapsed spelter manufacturers re- 
ported that the surplus was wiped out and that they were 
preparing to run their furnaces at full capacity. Such 
facts are evidence of great solidarity to the future of the 
zinc industry. 



The production of spelter in the United States for 
1909 not only showed remarkable gains but broke all previ- 
ous records and the most optimistic hopes of those engaged 
in the zinc industry. The total production is estimated at 
268,215 tons. The estimated consumption for the year is 
285,765 tons. This latter contains a large part of the 
previous year's surplus and does not take into considera- 
tion the fact that of the apparent consumption a large 
part of the stocks held by metal brokers may be included 
in this total. But such growth only accentuates the im- 
portance of the zinc industry. 

The United States has gradually forged forward in 
spelter production until in 1907 it took first rank, passing 
Germany, its nearest rival. In 1908, because of the greater 
industrial stagnancy in this country, it again fell back to 
second place, but advanced to first place with this year's 
totals. For years Germany has held the head of the col- 
umn. Its mining and smelting practice were the examples 
for the world. It passed easily ahead of Belgium, its 
nearest competitor for years, largely because of its supply 
of native ores, while England and France fell back to third 
and fourth place. The rapid rise of the United States and 
the passing of these old and established national industries 
has been due to the cheap fuels of this country and the 
great high grade spelter production of the Joplin district, 
which, with the numerous other localities in this country, 
has made it possible for the smelters to be independent of 
importations. Another fact contributing to the exceptional 
growth of the zinc industry in this country was the prox- 
imity of this cheap fuel to the ore deposits. 

THE WORLD'S SPELTER PRODUCERS. 

Country. 1907. 1908. 

United States 249,860 210,424 

Germany — 

Rhein District 77,459 80,696 

Silesia District 152,611 158,379 

Belgium 170,307 181,910 

France and Spain 61,438 61,533 

Great Britain 61,286 60,049 

Holland 16,526 19,023 

Austria and Italy 12,522 15,680 

Poland 10,635 10,752 

Australia 1,098 1,198 

Totals 813,842 799,644 

Statistics mean little to the average man and yet the 
only way of comparing things or showing relative values 
lies in figures or percentages. For that reason the relative 
importance of the American zinc industry is shown in the 
above table. The world's production has grown 60 per 

8 



cent during the last twelve years, while the American 
production has almost doubled. Figured on the basis of 
the 1908 production, the United States furnished 26 per 
cent of the world's spelter. In 1907 its production was 
over 30 per cent, which will be approximately the amount 
for 1909, according to the present outlook. 

The part that Joplin plays in the great zinc industry 
is the most vital point to the men in this district. You 
occasionally hear the bombast who praises the Joplin dis- 
trict to the skies. He many times lays claim to exagger- 
ated facts about this field. Such exaggerations and their 
inevitable downfall are always hurtful and the district has 
suffered greatly from such evils. But the real facts are 
amply sufficient to give this field the premier place in the 
production of high grade spelter ores the world over. 

WHAT THIS DISTRICT DOES. 

Returning to comparative statictics we find that the 
Joplin district in 1908 furnished 17 per cent of the world's 
output of spelter and in 1907 over 19 per cent. Of the 
American output the Joplin district supplied 63 per cent 
in 1907 and 64 per cent in 1908. These figures represent 
only the district's output that went into the production of 
metal alone. In addition to this there was a certain ton- 
nage of ore that went into the manufacture of oxide which 
was comparatively unimportant but which should. not be 
lost sight of in any estimate of the importance of the dis- 
trict as a center for the zinc industry. 

The spelter from the Joplin district alone for 1908 
was 136,520 tons, in 1907 158,304. This is greater than 
any other single area in the world except Silesia, Germany, 
which had for the corresponding years 158,379 and 152,611 
tons of metal. It would appear that the amount credited 
to Belgium is also larger, but it should be remembered that 
the Belgian spelter is made up of ores imported from many 
countries, the Belgian native ores forming only a small por- 
tion of the ores smelted. 

A BIGGER TONNAGE OF ORE AND SPELTER. 

The percentage of the Joplin district for 1909 will be 
greatly enhanced owing to the exceptional growth in the 
ore tonnage, as already demonstrated in the returns. For 

1908 the output of ores was only 259,548 tons, while in 

1909 the production was 300,000 tons, an increase of prac- 
tically 40,000 tons in one year, equivalent to 20,000 tons 
of spelter. 

LARGEST MINING DISTRICT IN WORLD IS JOPLIN. 

Another feature showing the importance of the Joplin 
district in the zinc industry is the magnitude of the mining 
operations carried on. Few people realize that the real 



magnitude of mining operations depends upon the ton- 
nage of crude ore hoisted out of the ground rather than 
upon the tonnage of concentrates sold from the bins. Ac- 
cording to calculations made by the United States Geolog- 
ical Survey for 1907, the crude ore hoisted from Southwest 
Missouri mines alone was 8,097,108 tons. Adding to this 
the ore hoisted in the remaining camps of the district in 
Kansas and Oklahoma, the total should be in excess of 
10,000,000 tons, or the greatest amount of crude ore hoisted 
in any single mining state of the Union. The nearest com- 
petitor would be Michigan with its crude copper ore, which 
is slightly less than ten million tons. Nor does this take 
into consideration the tonnage of dirt and rock hoisted as 
dead work in the opening up of new shafts and prospects. 
On this basis the Joplin zinc district represents the great- 
est mining district in the world. In the aggregate of its 
mining operations it therefore heads the list. Yet it is 
this very feature to which its own people are most blind, 
and which so appalls every mining man who first comes to 
the district after years of experience elsewhere. 

CHEAP FUEL A FACTOR. 

That there seems a certainty of a still greater growth 
for the American zinc industry which will bring with it 
an increasing importance for the Joplin district is fore- 
shadowed by the relation of cheap fuel to the ore deposits 
of this country. The great difficulty with the foreign spel- 
ter industry lies in the constantly increasing cost of fuel 
and the steady depletion of the known ore reserves, which 
means more and more dependence upon imported ores. 
In America the growth of the ore reserves is one of the 
most striking features in zinc mining, and cheap fuel is 
assured for a long term of years, especially in the coal 
districts adjacent to the Joplin and Wisconsin zinc fields. 
This feature alone means a tremendous growth of the zinc 
industry and a concentration of its greatest activity in 
these great zinc ore fields of the United States. That the 
Joplin district is now the greatest center for the industry 
is assured, but that its present importance is very small as 
compared with its future promise seems doubly assured by 
the conditions which are so strongly in its favor. 

The relation of the zinc industry to the other great 
metal industries is one of vital import. The four great 
metal industries are iron and steel, copper, lead and zinc. 
These metals represent the basis for the industrial uses of 
the world. Of these, zinc is a close contestant for second 
place, and may eventually occupy it. When one under- 
stands that galvanized products are becoming more and 
more used, and that 66 per cent of all the spelter con- 
sumed is used for this purpose, it become more easy to see 
why the two industries are so interdependent. When one 

10 



is assured that every pound of brass has in it a certain 
percentage of zinc and copper, and that a majority of the 
bearings of all the machinery in the world is made of 
brass, one begins to realize the real importance of this 
metal to the mechanical world. Then the various alloys 
with copper, lead and other metals form a very important 
use. As zinc oxide mixed with white lead there is also a 
large consumption. All of these uses, it will be observed, 
are allied with the other great metals, and any increase of 
their use will help swell the consumption of zinc. These 
uses are sufficient to take up 75 per cent of the total pro- 
duction. 

AS AN INDEPENDENT METAL. 

Of the uses independent of all other metals there is a 
wide range, and in these uses lies a field for still greater 
growth to the industry. Spelter has had no "electrification 
age" as has copper, yet its growth has been remarkable. 
If the metal can be given the attention it deserves at the 
hands of its friends the uses will be still greatly increased 
and its importance and necessity made more permanent. 
The greatest factor in its future growth is the cheapness 
of the metal in comparison with copper and aluminum, 
whose place and uses it can fill in many instances with 
just as great durability and at greatly reduced cost. With 
the growing cost of lumber, it will take a still greater part 
in all roofing purposes. These various uses have never 
yet been stimulated by the metal producers, but when this 
is done the metal will then take second place with the 
great industrial metals. That means that the zinc indus- 
try, which is the industry of the Joplin district, is second 
only to iron and steel, and as far as filling a place in the 
industrial world is concerned is just as important. 

Surely if occupying the premier place in a great Amer- 
ican industry which has by its wonderful growth surpassed 
all its competitors should swell the breast with a justi- 
fiable pride, then the man interested in the making of the 
zinc industry in the Joplin district has that right. Being 
thus interested in a great industrial necessity whose future 
seems certain of a still greater growth and importance, 
the confidence thus inspired should be a great asset in 
not only making but keeping the Joplin district the center 
of the American zinc industry. 



11 



CHAPTER II 

THE SOLIDARITY OF ZINC MINING INDUSTRY. 
CHAPTER II. 

Any industry may have certain periods of great pros- 
perity, periods which arise from multifarious conditions, 
both local and general. Nearly every industry has in its 
history such periods to which are assigned the name of 
"boom periods/' merely designatory of a fleeting and short- 
lived existence. These "boom periods," while bringing to 
certain elements prosperity, eventually result in utter ruin 
to the welfare of the industry as a whole. The "boom" is 
unnatural, there is nothing tangible behind it, and when 
there is any real pressure on the bubble it bursts, leaving 
dismay and chagrin behind. 

The zinc mining industry has suffered from just such 
a boom period, and the marks of those trying days on the 
investing public still linger as scars, scars which retain 
their raw and irritated condition even with the passing 
of a decade of years. Yet with the passing of these years 
there has come to the industry a solidarity which places it 
upon a par with the excellence of any other industry that 
may be presented. Today the prospective investor is ap- 
proached with an array of facts from which he can deduct 
the logical conclusion that there is a large legitimate profit 
in zinc mining. Formerly he was beguiled by the lurid 
claims of the "boom promoter." Between these two great 
periods there has been developed a real foundation upon 
which the future of zinc is being substantially reared. 

The solidarity of the industry is based upon its grow- 
ing uses of zinc in the industrial world. It now fills a 
real need. This need is becoming more insistent every 
year and the cumulative process means a greater growth 
indefinitely. Of course, there will be periods of general 
depression and the industry will have to bear its part as 
it did in past years. But having found its place, its future 
growth is but a matter of wise development by those 
managing the various enterprises engaged in it. 

ZINC A SAVING FACTOR. 

There are several reasons why the zinc industry is 
now on a more solid foundation. One of the chief of these 

12 



lies in the fact that zinc belongs to that great class of 
natural products which makes for conservation, a saving 
or prolonging the use of things. The conservation idea is 
growing more and more because of the increasing cost of 
every commodity and the steady depletion of many natural 
products. Zinc, because of its indestructibility or resist- 
ance to oxidation, enters into the problem as a saving fac- 
tor, and for that reason is highly desired where it can be 
properly utilized. As a covering for iron it stops rusting 
and thus lengthens the life of the article. For this use 
of galvanizing 66 per cent of all the spelter now being 
produced is utilized every year. 

Every year the iron and steel industry grows greater. 
The ore reserves are becoming smaller and iron is grow- 
ing dearer. Its protection, therefore, is a matter of grow- 
ing interest and galvanizing for that reason alone is but 
in its infancy. Many articles now ungalvanized will be 
galvanized in the future. For instance, a few years ago 
all nails and steeples were drawn from iron alone and 
marketed. They were free to rust in 75 per cent of the 
uses to which they were put. Today a large percentage 
of them are galvanized. In the cases of shingle nails the 
nails themselves are made of spelter. The wire industry 
has been revolutionized by galvanizing and the saving to 
the world by zinc in this case alone is of tremendous pro- 
portions. 

NEW GALVANIZING METHODS. 

But pure galvanizing, while filling a great place, has 
had some difficult things to overcome and for years could 
not be used in every respect where such use would have 
been eminently desirable. ' More recent discoveries in meth- 
ods of coating iron with zinc has led to a hope of meeting 
these difficulties and thus greatly extending the use of 
galvanized iron. These new processes are known as elec- 
trozincing, cold galvanizing, sherardizing and cowperizing. 
In the use of the two latter methods a coating of zinc is 
placed on objects that even when broken or cracked by 
bending or abrasion does not allow rusting to take place. 
This property is due to the alloying of the zinc with the 
iron to a certain thickness. From this it is easy to recog- 
nize a great field for future development, especially when 
it is learned that these latter methods require less zinc to 
make the coating and there is no loss incurred as in the 
old hot method. 

With such a close relation between iron, steel and 
zinc, the future of the zinc industry will be recognized as 
parallel to a large extent with the greatest metal industry 
in the world. The sales of iron and steel will become more 
and more a barometer of the trade conditions of zinc. The 

13 



higher the cost of iron and steel and their greater deple- 
tion, the greater the need for spelter will become, for con- 
servation will be only the more necessary. 

ZINC USED AS SHINGLES. 

Another feature where conservation will play an im- 
portant part in the development of the needs for spelter 
lies in the use of sheet zinc or zinc shingles for roofing 
purposes in place of the rapidly diminishing wood shingle 
supply. That use has already reached considerable pro- 
portions in Europe and is growing rapidly in America, due 
largely to the rapidly diminishing lumber supply and the 
advance in the price of shingles. Yet with such an opening 
there has been no persistent or organized effort by the 
manufacturers of sheet zinc to occupy this important field. 
What has come has come through the natural demands of 
trade stimulated by the needs felt. 

Here are but two great avenues for the consumption of 
spelter. There remain still the needs arising from the tre- 
mendous brass industry, which is also growing and taking a 
more important place in the industrial world. From these 
needs has been built up the solidarity which makes a firm 
foundation for the future prosperity of the entire zinc indus- 
try. The foundation is now recognized as firmly established, 
for the essentials are positive needs in the industrial world 
which spelter fills as no other product will fill it. 

WHY CONSUMPTION IS AHEAD OF PROGRESS. 

Moreover, in this industry there is one great fact that 
insures for the producer of zinc ore and spelter a constant 
demand for the product. This fact would seem to insure 
that consumption of spelter will always be slightly ahead of 
production, especially as long as galvanizing takes such a 
great proportion of the spelter. This fact is, that of all the 
spelter used in galvanizing there is little or none ever re- 
turned for use again as scrap. When spelter is used in gal- 
vanizing, it is gone forever.' And every year 66 per cent of 
the output is thus consumed. The only zinc ever returned 
for second use comes in old brasses or sheet. This is a very 
small percentage of the annual output, and as compared 
with other metals, like copper, lead and iron, forms a strik- 
ing contrast. Everyone is familiar with the tremendous 
junk trade in those metals. The absence of any returned 
spelter to the channels of trade means that so far as the 
producer of raw material is concerned there is added only 
another great element of solidarity to the industry. 

The years since the boom period of 1898 and 1899 have 
done many things for the zinc industry. The metal has 
become recognized as filling a certain place and as a nec- 
essary element in commerce. The needs it satisfies have 
been wonderfully increased. The profits between the 

14 



miners and smelters have been more equitably distributed 
and each is more nearly aware of the position of the other. 
Each recognizes that they are but component parts of one 
industry, that the welfare of both must be carefully 
guarded if either is to prosper long. The fog has cleared 
away and the industry now more nearly understands itself, 
and with this decade of growth and education now presents 
a field of opportunity for all who care to enter a field in 
which those who are now interested feel confident. 



15 



CHAPTER III 

PROFITS IN ZINC MINING. 

The question of the investor on coming to a zinc dis- 
trict is always, "Is zinc mining profitable ?" The question 
is not only one which should be asked and answered truth- 
fully, but the various reasons why it is profitable, and the 
concrete proofs of the mines that have been great profit- 
makers should be given in detail. The facts are amply 
sufficient to make zinc mining attractive withotit any addi- 
tion in glowing statements which might not bear close in- 
vestigation. The honest promoter or mining man will not 
hesitate to give these facts plainly, and nothing is more dis- 
tasteful to the substantial men engaged in the industry 
than the bombastic operations carried on by the "curb- 
stoners" or "seatwarmers" with which every mining dis- 
trict is to a certain extent cursed. 

The first proofs needed to show that zinc and lead 
mining is profitable lies in the great country built up from 
the industry since its inception. The Joplin district is 
covered with cities which in themselves are concrete exam- 
ples of the substantial gains which have been obtained by 
the men engaged in the industry. These cities are equal 
to those of any other industrial community, and their rapid 
growth and advancement is the measure of the prosperity 
they have enjoyed. A population of 200,000 Americans, 
most of whom live in modern homes and in comfortable 
circumstances, certainly is the first proof that the industry 
in which they are engaged is a profitable one. 

VALUE OF YEARLY OUTPUT. 

The value of the yearly output of the industry is also 
a criterion of no mean value. An industry which annually 
markets products to the value of $12,000,000 to $15,000,000 
certainly presents opportunities for profit, or else the capi- 
tal already engaged in it would seek other fields for invest- 
ment. 

But these are the generalities, the proofs which any- 
one should be able to discern but which sometimes are 
entirely overlooked, just because they are so palpable, so 
common, so taken-for-granted. Yet were these taken away 
the idea of profitable investment would not come so easy, 
and proofs more concrete would have to be submitted. 

16 



In the case of the Joplin district it is easy to submit 
the concrete proofs. Certainly the men who represent the 
district as its substantial business men, the men who now 
represent the investing class or leaders in all industrial 
movements, should form a very good exhibit of the pros- 
perity to be gained in investment in zinc mining. The men 
of wealth through the zinc district will be pointed out 
almost universally as having made their wealth in mining 
or investment in mining lands, and what is perhaps most 
striking in such evidence is the fact that the majority of 
these men have risen from the very wielders of the pick 
and shovel. Of course, the pessimist is prone to say they 
are merely "lucky." But if such is the case, Dame Fortune 
is especially prodigal in the Joplin district. 

THE COST OF PRODUCTION. 

But what about relative costs of production? What is 
the cost of producing a ton of ore? What investment will 
have to be made before there is a return upon it? Here 
are the questions that are really to the point and which the 
practical mining man takes pleasure in demonstrating. 
The answer lies wholly in the accumulated mining data 
from the companies which have been operating in the field 
for years. For instance, the mining men during 1909 took 
a careful canvass of the entire mining field during the 
tariff agitation to ascertain mining costs. These figures 
are as reliable as can be ascertained anywhere, as they 
comprise reports from many properties operating under 
all conditions throughout the field. From such data a fair 
average should be ascertained, as well as a knowledge of 
the extremes to be encountered. 

Taking six of these mines as representative of the vary- 
ing conditions to be found, the cost for the production of a 
ton of concentrate ranges from $28.08 to $44.91. They run 
along from $28.08, $33.67, $34.54, $36.83, $38.75 to $44.91. 
The average of the whole lot is $36.13. These mines are 
mines that had been operating from month to month. 
There were others, some with production costs very much 
below the minimum here taken, but they were not taken 
into consideration because the bulk of the mines had costs 
more nearly within the limits here shown. There were 
mines that showed a higher cost of production, but they 
were considered the failures, the impossibles. These costs 
represent the actual costs of producing the ore ready to 
ship, including royalty and amortization of the plant equip- 
ment. 

FIGURES SHOWING PROFITS. 

Taking these as a basis of figuring the profits in zinc 
mining, at present prices of $50 to $52 per ton, it is ascer- 
tained the profit per ton on the lowest cost production is 
$21.92. On the others in their order the profits are $16.33, 

17 



$15.46, $13.17, $11.25, while the very maximum production 
cost still gives a profit of $5.09 per ton. 

Here is a concrete case of a lease with a 200-ton mill 
upon it. The mill is run one shift per twenty-four hours. 
It recovers 3 per cent in concentrate. Its mining cost is 
$35 per ton of concentrate. Its initial investment was 
$35,000. With $50 ore its profits per week are $540. A 
year's run of forty weeks, allowing the remainder of the 
time for contingencies such as break-downs, fuel shortage, 
dead work and miscellaneous hindrances that will always 
arise in mining, gives an annual return of over $20,000. 
In two years' time the capital investment should be re- 
turned with an additional dividend. Given the average 
life of the mines in the district, it will yield three more 
years of continuous dividends. 

The above is based upon present zinc ore prices. With 
a low r er price for ore the profits diminish proportionately 
until the point is reached where labor costs are reduced 
and there is a readjustment in profits. The conditions here 
given are believed to be fair and conservative for the entire 
field. There will be other examples of larger mills, larger 
investments and lower production costs. There will be 
richer ore and hence lower production costs. There will 
be any number of variations, but the average mining in the 
district is thus demonstrated profitable where it is carried 
on as a business in a practical way. There are few invest- 
ments which return the principal in so short a time and 
pay such dividends as zinc mining in the Joplin district 
where the investment is made along business lines. 

THERE ARE SOME FAILURES. 

Let it not be understood that there are no failures. 
There are the usual number of failures in this industry 
that there are in others. They are due also to the usual 
causes plus those that come with the gambling spirit w r hich 
seems to be so permanently fixed in the minds of everyone 
who first tries investing in mining. When the term "usual 
causes" was used, it meant the normal chances encountered 
in every business venture. It meant the incompetence 
which is so often the cause of money lost. It meant the 
lack of proper investigation in the investment previous to 
the paying of the money. 

In addition, failure has come from trying to do a min- 
ing business through the employment of men unacquainted 
with that work. Success could scarcely come with an utter 
disregard of the principles of prospecting and mining as 
demonstrated by years of experience. Nor should one ex- 
pect much when they invest money as a "flyer" without 
competent advice regarding the property from a mining 
engineer. There is just as much in the use of good com- 
mon sense in investing in zinc and lead mining as there is 

18 



in a real estate investment, and only by the use of good 
common sense on the part of the investor will the number 
of failures be decreased. 

The amount of investment which is necessary to enter 
this field is ridiculously small in comparison with other 
fields, yet there is open the possibility for very large in- 
vestment. Perhaps there is no other mining field left 
where there is such latitude where the small man has just 
as much chance as the large one. Nor is there a field where 
large amounts of capital can find a more profitable return 
when invested with prudence and common sense. 



19 



CHAPTER IV 

WHERE ORES ARE MARKETED WITHOUT COST. 

The Joplin district presents the unique position of mar- 
keting its zinc and lead ores directly from the bins of the 
ore producers without having to pay freight or haulage 
from the mine to railroad or smelter, a privilege enjoyed by 
few classes of mines and few mining districts in the world. 
Contrasted with other fields where the mine operator has 
to haul his ore over long stretches of mountain road, some- 
times being compelled to rely upon burros for transporta- 
tion, the mine operator of the Joplin district is favored, 
for he sells his ore directly from the doors of his concen- 
trating plant without having to give the matter any 
thought beyond ascertaining that he has obtained the best 
price offered for his grade of ore for that particular week. 

What this means to the mine operator is readily rec- 
ognized by even the untutored, for marketing costs for 
mine products eat up very rapidly the profits of mining. 
In the Joplin district there is no marketing cost in the 
largest central camps, only the very remote or outside 
camps ever having to spend a part of their earnings in 
getting their product to market. These last instances are 
very few in number compared with the bulk of the op- 
erators in the entire field. This means a vastly increased 
profit from mining operations conducted in this district. 
It means the substitution of profit instead of loss; it means 
placing the marketing cost upon the buyer of the ore in- 
stead of the seller. 

INDUSTRIAL EXPLANATION. 

To the outside investor who understands the value 
of such procedure as cost of production, cost of market- 
ing and other items which enter into an industrial enter- 
prise, the topic of how and where ores are marketed and 
smelted presents some features which should make clear 
why zinc mining in the Joplin district when wisely and 
economically carried on is so profitable a business. 

In the first place, the buyer of zinc ore comes directly 
to the operator's ore bins, secures a sample of the ore 
and assays it. He then makes a bid upon it. There may 
b^ two or three buyers who do this ; they make competitive 
bids. The mine operator can sell his ore to whom he 

20 



pleases, and usually sells to the highest bidder. After sell- 
ing the ore the buyer sends teams and wagons and hauls 
the ore, having it weighed over public scales, or often 
weighing it over the operator's scales and accepting his 
weights. If the operator has scales he can always check 
the weights of the other weigher, thus insuring himself 
against any loss. When the ore is loaded on the car the 
money is ready for the operator. 

Settlements for the ore may be effected in two ways. 
If the buyer and seller choose they may settle on the first 
bin sample or they may sample the car after it is loaded, 
which is perhaps the best way to secure the best average 
for the ore, as through the loading process it is shoveled 
over and over again, thus mixing the ore thoroughly and 
making the grade fairly uniform. The sampling may be 
done in such a manner as to still further mix the ores. 
This sample is then split into three lots, one being taken 
by the buyer and one by the seller and a third taken 
and sealed to be used as an umpire sample if the two 
assays of the buyer and seller are so variant as to pre- 
vent settlement. If the two assays are reasonably close 
together the two parties split the difference. If the dif- 
ference is so great as to make either party dissatisfied 
with such splitting, the umpire assay is run and the one 
most closely checked by this is used as the basis of set- 
tlement. There is in such methods absolute fairness. 

CONTRAST WITH OTHER DISTRICTS. 

Contrast the above methods of selling ore with those 
in the west where metal mines are located. For the most 
part the mines are further away from transportation lines. 
The miner has to pay for the transportation from his 
claim or -mill to the railroad, which in many instances 
is very costly. It often means the actual investment of 
thousands of dollars in road building before the operator 
can even haul his ores to the railroad. When that is done 
he puts it on board cars and ships it to some smelter. 
The smelter then has complete control of assays and 
after assaying it and deducting numerous penalties and 
charges sends a check for the value in — perhaps a month, 
two months or just whenever it gets good and ready. 
So dilatory are the western smelters in their settlements 
and so arbitrary in their methods that the entire western 
mining fraternity is constantly in arms over the outrages 
they have to endure. Joplin mining men who attend the 
American Mining Congress will remember that at every 
session the question is brought up. The meeting at Jop- 
lin was characterized by the bitterness of the feeling that 
the western miners exhibited against the methods of these 
western smelters. Apparently the miners have no way 

21 



of checking assays, weights or moistures against the as- 
says of the smelters. All of this trouble the Joplin zinc 
and lead mine operator escapes with not only unruffled 
feelings but correspondingly increased profits. 

LEAD ORES ENJOY SAME ADVANTAGES. 

What has been said of the selling of zinc ores applies 
with equal force to lead ores. The same advantages apply. 
The ore is purchased directly from the producers' bins on 
assays which are checked by the operator. There is no 
waiting for settlements; the money is paid just as soon as 
the assays are agreed upon. While there is not the com- 
petition for lead ores that there is for zinc ores in the 
Joplin district, previous experience has proved that the 
exceptional purity and grade of the concentrates has helped 
to make these ores highly desired, and the prices paid 
have usually been satisfactory. 

Even the Joplin mine operator fails to recognize his 
advantages, largely because he has never felt the disad- 
vantages. It means a great deal for an industry to have 
no direct marketing costs. That privilege is enjoyed by 
the Joplin zinc mining industry. This elimination of cost 
makes profits larger and makes it possible to mine many 
ore deposits which would otherwise be condemned. To the 
shrewd investor the fact that this industry has such ad- 
vantages appeals with great force, and rightfully, for the 
Joplin district is unique in this respect. 



22 



CHAPTER V 

ZINC ORE MARKET MADE IN JOPLIN DISTRICT. 

When the bulk of the product of any industry is ob- 
tained in any one place, that place becomes the center of 
the industry, and around it will be grouped the movements 
and tendencies that enter into the making of its market. 
At that point will originate the basis price which becomes 
the standard for the remainder of the industrial world. 
For instance, Pittsburgh is the steel center of the United 
States, and the price of steel is made there, and so for 
other products that have one point of preponderating influ- 
ence in either production or manufacture. This is practi- 
cally a universal law of trade, and while the Joplin district 
has hardly awakened to its real importance in the zinc 
industry, it has unconsciously taken its place as the center 
of the source of the bulk of the raw material, and when 
the district becomes conscious of its power and influence 
in the making of prices for both ore and metal it will 
wield a power that will bring to it greater prestige and 
profits. 

FEW REALIZE THE ACTUAL CONDITIONS. 

Few of; the district's mine operators realize the oppor- 
tunities that lie before it. On the other hand the zinc 
smelting interests of the United States not only recognize 
the importance of the Joplin district in the industry, but 
have openly pointed it out time after time. In the recent 
fight over the zinc ore tariff the smelters expressed a fear 
of the possible power to be exerted by this district, which 
was tantamount to admitting that if the district realized 
its power it could dominate the entire zinc industry. It 
was urged strenuously and of course with a great deal of 
bias in the contention that free ores were necessary to 
hold down the growing influence of the Joplin distnct in 
the domination of the zinc industry. While this argu- 
ment was made for effect, the very fact that it could be 
made at all is sufficient evidence to indicate the respect in 
which the power of the Joplin district is held. It shows 
that the smelter men recognize in the district one of the 
great controlling factors, even if the district itself has not 
yet awakened to that realization. And while the zinc 
mining industry of the district should not use its power to 
harm the zinc smelting industry, it should recognize its own 

23 



importance and power and assert its power for its own 
benefit and in the building up of both the zinc mining and 
zinc smelting industry of the United States. 

In a general way the district's mine operators know 
that the Joplin district furnishes the largest production of 
zinc ores for spelter manufacture in the country, and as a 
mere phrase of high-sounding description or compliment 
they pass it along without giving the matter the serious 
consideration it deserves. The entire district should settle 
clown and give the problem adequate attention. 

JOPLIN PRODUCES SIXTY PER CENT. 

In the first place the districts that produce spelter 
ores for American smelters are Joplin, Wisconsin, New 
Jersey, Colorado, New Mexico, old Mexico, British 
Columbia and scattering camps throughout the Western 
states. Of these Joplin alone furnishes approximately 
60 per cent of the entire amount. Taking the spelter 
output of 1907 as a basis for discussion, it will be 
found that the spelter ores needed were approximately 
532,000 tons. This means a weekly demand of approxi- 
mately 10,300 tons of ore. Of this amount there was 
secured 5,700 tons in the Joplin district, leaving the re- 
mainder to be secured from the other districts scattered 
over the country. This remainder of 4,600 tons, distrib- 
uted among so many camps, some of them great distances 
from the others, accentuates the importance of the Joplin 
district as the great central field of ore supply. It be- 
comes evident at once that the consumers of ore will 
direct the maximum of attention to the Joplin district. 

This means that since this is the only district where 
such a bulk of ore is produced that it becomes the focal 
center of the industry. Its production alone is of greater 
importance than the combined production of the rest of 
the country. Whatever happens to the Joplin district af- 
fects virtually the entire industry. Let the production of 
Kentucky, or Wisconsin, or Idaho or Colorado be stopped 
for a week or a month, and the industry will go on com- 
paratively unharmed, but let the production of the Joplin 
district be 'stopped entirely for even one week at a time 
and the effect is instantaneous. In the first instance the 
stoppage of production means a loss of 1,000 to 2,000 tons 
of ore, while in the case of Joplin the loss would mean 
5,700 to 6,500 tons. Let the district shut down entirely 
for one month and the industry would be short one- 
twentieth of the year's ore supply. 

JOPLIN DISTRICT DWARFS ALL COMPETITION. 

What does the ore surplus amount to in other camps 
of the country as compared with that in the Joplin dis- 
trict? If all of them were put together in one great camp 

24 



it would not equal the importance of that in the Joplin 
district, and when distributed over the United States in 
many small districts they dwindle into relative insignifi- 
cance. Compare, if you please, 100 tons in Nevada, 50 
tons in Montana, 30 tons in Idaho, 300 tons in Wisconsin 
and 1,000 tons in Colorado with 7,000 tons in the Joplin 
district. 

Such facts as these indicate that the zinc ore market 
of the United States is made in the Joplin district, and 
the production and surplus of this field control in a very 
large measure the zinc industry of the country. It is a 
fact that many ore contracts in the West are based upon 
the ore prices prevalent in the Joplin district during the 
week the ores are delivered, while others are based on 
the price of the metal. 

ORE BUYERS ARE COMPETITORS. 

Is it any wonder then that at certain seasons there is 
competition among the ore buyers that sends ore rapidly 
upward? Is it any wonder that outsiders who enter this 
field marvel at the competition exhibited for the ores in 
this district? The mine operators of this field have been 
so long accustomed to the competition that they often 
overlook it and at times believe sincerely that the ore 
buyers all act in unison. But while at times conditions 
may make it possible for buyers to co-operate for a while, 
the time inevitably comes when buying orders from the 
smelter headquarters means a struggle for the ores regard- 
less of how it effects the other buyers. Were the Joplin 
mine operators compelled to sell their ores as do the West- 
ern metal miners they would quickly realize their advan- 
tages in this field. 

These facts reveal a power existent in this field that 
means a still greater future for this district if its operators 
and future investors will but exercise their present advan- 
tages and recognize the power and importance of the field 
in the zinc industry. By co-operative action and unifica- 
tion of purpose along constructive lines it would be hard 
to foretell just the importance to which the district would 
rise. It naturally occupies a commanding position now 
and its natural growth, which is now very rapid, would 
place it still higher. But with such endless opportunity 
for development and with an awakened public conscious- 
ness in the real importance of the district in the industry, 
Joplin will mean to zinc what Pittsburgh means to steel. 



% Zd 



CHAPTER VI 

JOPLIN DISTRICT NEEDS CAPITAL. 

In the development of any industry capital can play 
an important part, and for the use of capital the industry 
pays a certain percentage of its earnings in interest or 
dividends. The interests or dividends depend entirely 
upon the need of the industry for capital, and the demand 
for capital comes with insistent force in all growing in- 
dustries. It has been noted that during the last few years 
the zinc industry has been growing very rapidly and the 
demands made for the metal have forced it into the front 
rank of the metal industries of the world. This great 
growth has brought with it a demand for capital which 
offers special inducements and the opportunities for the 
use of abundant capital in the Joplin district, where the 
return on the investment is exceedingly liberal, exist in 
almost limitless number in every camp. 

But the man with money to invest says, "What do 
you want to do with the money invested .?"■ The answers 
from the Joplin mining man come quickly. One wants 
sufficient capital to put up a milling plant on a developed 
prospect. Another, sufficient money to put in an adequate 
pumping plant to drain an already developed property 
which is now idle. Still another pleads for money to finish 
the drilling on a "forty"- where he has already demon- 
strated a favorable mineral showing. Still another has 
the "forty" drilled and proven and desires the money to 
do the shaft sinking and development work. Others have 
large tracts of land absolutely virgin, but with no capital 
to test the merits of the ground. All of these needs are 
present, not in a few instances, but in numberless in- 
stances, in every camp in the district. 

INVESTMENTS MAY BE MADE IN ANY AMOUNT. 

For certain classes of mining in the district there is 
need of varying amounts of capital to insure profitable 
operation. Where the ore deposits are shallow and the 
ore itself comparatively free from gangue the mining is 
very simple and the investment small. The poorest man 
can engage in this kind of mining. Where the deposits 
are deeper and water is encountered the cost of min'ng 
becomes somewhat greater and more capital becomes nec- 
essary. With greater depth comes the disseminated and 

26 



sheet ground deposits, which require more elaborate mill- 
ing, and the initial investment becomes still greater. There 
are thus demonstrated gradations in the classes or sizes 
of investments which are necessary to be made in the 
development of mining enterprises in the district, and 
these gradations make room for every class of investor, 
from the very small to the very large. 

As a concrete instance where capital has been needed 
to erect mills, may be cited the Galena camp. For years 
the small miners in that camp have been struggling with- 
out help. They have been getting out ore and hauling 
it long distances in a crude state to custom plants or selling 
it "in the rough" for a mere pittance, where if they could 
have gotten the capital required for a mill the profit from 
the additional investment would have yielded handsome 
returns to all interested. That capital is now finding this 
out is shown by the fact that contracts for many new mills 
on as many different leases have been let recently in that 
camp. Not only will there be greater profit from the sav- 
ings brought about by milling the ores themselves, but 
there will be no loss hereafter in the haulage. 

BETTER MILLING PLANTS INCREASE DIVIDENDS. 

Capital is also finding a profitable return in the pro- 
vision of better milling plants, and hence better returns. 
The older plants, while blazing the way in the milling 
practice needed for the district, had many losses, and the 
new T type of mill involving more capital investment is 
bringing a greater saving of the ore and hence a greater 
profit. Even the investment in the larger mills, which 
'means handling a greater tonnage of ore in a shorter 
length of time, means a reduction in the cost of produc- 
tion. Within certain limits this increased size of mill and 
increase in investment is justified and brings its return 
to the investors. 

But these instances merely indicate what capital is 
already doing and some of its avenues of operation. What 
is really important in showing the opportunities for 
capital lies largely in the profits of zinc mining 
already delineated in a previous chapter and the 
great areas of absolutely virgin territory awaiting the 
necessary development to produce zinc and lead. One 
of the most striking things to the visitor on first coming 
into the district is the vast expanse of territory that lies 
untouched between the various camps of the district. Why 
is it yet untouched? Simply because there have not been 
the men and capital to do it. But the development is 
steadily growing as rapidly as the capital and men under- 
take the work. 

27 



PRESENT DEVELOPMENTS BUT DOTS ON THE MAP. 

In the district there is approximately an area 90 miles 
long by 50 wide, within which there are located various 
centers of activity. These centers of activity are but dcts 
on the map as compared with the area of undeveloped land 
around them. This area offers every possibility for devel- 
oping into productive territory that the present camps did. 
Moreover, the development of this new territory has vast 
advantages over the first development in having the con- 
tiguous territory partly developed as centers from which 
to work. 

In addition the development under more favorable 
circumstances today makes any investment much safer 
than were the earlier ones. Those early pioneer 'days 
were ones in which the very industry was feeling its way. 
Today the industry is in the very throes of hurried prog- 
ress. The methods of development, prospecting, milling 
practice, have been solved to the extent that the industry 
is highly profitable to the practical business man. Today 
there is every facility in the way of supplies at hand. 
Railroads from a veritable network all over the territory 
to be developed. The entire field is a rolling prairie, or 
only slightly broken with low hills ; not a point in the field 
is difficult of approach, or out of reach of a two hours' 
automobile ride from any camp in the district. Mining in 
the Joplin district is mining under the choicest industrial 
conditions enjoyed by any mining district in the world. 
Yet here are thousands of acres of land totally undevel- 
oped. They may be secured by purchase and the invest- 
ment will yield well. They may be secured under favor- 
able leases, and the money expended judiciously in develop- 
ment of them will yield good returns. But whatever in- 
vestments are made in the district should be made on the 
basis of further development of the lands into mineral 
producers. The returns on investment come from ore 
production, and investments should be made toward that 
end, whether they be in buying lands or in leasing them. 

FIELD IS OPEN TO EVERYONE. 

What is also of interest to the future investor is that 
this field is yet open to everyone. The zinc mining indus- 
try is not yet consolidated. There is no trust that con- 
trols the bulk of the lands or output, as in copper or steel. 
It is still a "free field and a fair fight." In coming to the 
district with his capital he will be free from any fear of 
labor strikes, as the workmen are all Americans, who may 
be miners one day or operators the next, and for this 
reason serious labor troubles have never been known. 

But in the investment of his money the capitalist must 
exercise judgment in this industry as in all others. He 

28 



must investigate the conditions surrounding his invest- 
ment. He should see to it that he deals with and through 
reputable mining men. He should make his investment 
with all the care and advice a judicial investor makes in 
investing in manufacturing enterprises. When this is 
done capital will find not only great opportunities for 
profitable investment in the Joplin zinc district, but will 
find such investments eminentlv safe. 



AVERAGE MONTHLY AND ANNUAL PRICES FOR 
SPELTER IN ST. LOUIS FOR PAST TEN YEARS 





1900. 


1901. 


1902. 


1903. 


1904 


1905. 


1906. 


1907. 


1908 


1909. 


Jan. 


$ 4 43 


*3 89 


•<4.14 


$4 67 


$4.73 


$6.13 


$6.40 


$6 65 


*4.43 


S5.00 


Feb. 


4 61 


3 80 


3.98 


483 


4 73 


6 02 


5.94 


6.76 


4.74 


4 75 


March 


-1 44 


3.75 


4 11 


5 n 


4 85 


6.00 


612 


6 78 


4 60 


4.63 


April 


4 52 




4 19 


5 42 


5 06 


5.77 


5 9b 


6 63 


4 53 


4 82 


May- 


4.44 


3.84 


4 24 


5.50 


4.94 


5.39 


5.90 


3.40. 


4.49 


4.97 


June 


4.16 




4 61 


5 59 


4 64 


5 10 


6.04 


6 35 


4.45 


5.27 


July 


4 12 


3.80 


4 9s 


5 50 


4.77 


5.28 


5 91 


6.03 


4 36 


5 27 


August 


4.02 


3 80 


5 24 


5 56 


4 78 


5 62 


5.91 


5 60 


4 57 


5 60 


Sept. 


3.93 




5 24 


5 65 




5 75 


6.11 


5 16 


4.64 


5.65 


Oct. 


4.02 


4.07 


5.24 






5 97 


6 14 


5,34 


4 65 


6.05 


Nov. 


4.13 


4.12 


5:08 


5 04 


5.37 


K 02 


6.29 


4.93 


4.95 


6.27 


Dec. 


4 05 


4 15 


4 59 






6 43 


6 50 


4 21 


5 as 


6 14 



Y'rlyav. *4 24 $3 B9 $4 64 - 15.79 *6J " 84 62 $5.3 



29 



CHAPTER VII 

ZINC MINING OFFERS OPPORTUNITIES TO POOR 

MAN. 

The opportunities which exist in any industry are 
measured by the prosperity of the workers engaged in it. 
They are also measured by the rapidity of growth in the 
industry and the future outlook and development. Meas- 
ured by such standards the zinc mining industry of the 
Joplin district offers a field which teems with opportunity 
for men of ambition and industry.' 

Throughout 1909 there was a steady call for labor 
which has not yet been answered by sufficient workmen 
to fill the places that need filling. One week there was a 
call for 2,000 workmen and 100 teams from one camp in 
the mining district. That call is just as insistent from 
many of the remaining camps, and the slowness of the 
influx of men to fill these needs is a brake on the wheels 
of the district's industry. With many mills still idle on 
account of labor shortage, and with many other plants 
desiring to put on a double shift, the opportunity for 
workmen alone is written in letters large enough to be 
seen half across the continent. 

WHAT LABOR DEMAND MEANS. 

With such a demand for labor there is always a high 
wage scale, and the day in the Joplin district is again fast 
approaching when the weekly wage of the shoveler is 
almost, if not as large as the salary of the mine superin- 
tendent. Surely such demand is indicative of the oppor- 
tunity now existent in the district for the laboring man 
alone. 

The profitable condition in the zinc mining industry 
of the Joplin district, due to the present greater demand 
for ore and the consequent higher level of ore prices, also 
offers to the small investor or prospector a field for very 
profitable operation. The old shallow levels, so product- 
ive in the early history of the district, are still available 
in many parts of the field. To these deposits during the 
panic months many miners turned for their subsistence, 
and their trust was not in vain, for the sudden increase 
in the production of ore from this old source was so large 
as to attract the attention of everyone, and was one of 

30 



the reasons why, even with a panic of tremendous propor- 
tions, the output of the Joplin district suffered so little 
reduction in tonnage. The only assets necessary for the 
working of these deposits are a few picks and shovels, a 
little powder, a "hoss hister" or a mere windlass, a hand 
jig, and sufficient muscular energy and ambition to work 
a few hours per day. 

NO INITIAL INVESTMENT IN MANY INSTANCES. 

The ground is available for working upon a lease sys- 
tem which does not demand an investment of money, but 
the payment of a certain percentage of the returns when 
the ore is taken out and really marketed. The land avail- 
able for such purposes is not nearly all taken up even in 
the confines of the old camps themselves, not taking into 
account the chances that a live prospector would have in 
prospecting new and adjoining ground. In the Granby, 
Joplin, Galena and Duenweg camps, which have been 
known as "poor men's camps," there are large areas which 
may be secured. 

In this connection it should be noted that it is in these 
more shallow deposits, which are usually free in character 
and easily cleaned, that the cost of mining goes down to 
the very minimum and the amount of profit approaches the 
maximum. It was in this very character of mining that 
the present leading mine operators and wealthy men of 
the district made their first "stake. " Nor is it it strange 
that today it is this very class of men who are the most 
eager to "grub stake" the miner in the development of 
such mines. 

HOW THOSE OLD-TIME BONANZAS WERE FOUND. 

It has been among this class of deposits that the great 
bonanza mines have been found. Those mines that in a 
few months' or a few years' time netted their owners 
thousands of dollars were found for the most part by the 
small operator or prospector or groups of such men asso- 
ciated together. Who has not heard of the tales of the 
old Dividend, the old Independence, the Hell Upon Earth, 
the old Octo and many in old Tanyard hollow, where the 
ore was found in such abundance and with so little expend- 
iture of capital? The greatest assets the old developers of 
the district had were ambition and a capacity for work. 
Yet these investments alone made the early fortunes and 
inaugurated the great mining industry of the Joplin dis- 
trict. These opportunities are not all gone by any means, 
and a casual survey of the district's camps reveals sur- 
prising instances during the past year. 

The early mining did not offer such a promise in 
profits as the mining of today. All the early fortunes 
were made on $14 to $30 "jack." Lead was somewhat 

31 



higher. The total amount received for the ore in those 
days was in many instances less than the profits on a ton 
of ore produced in the average mine at present prices. 
The difference in $20 and $50 ore gives a very large mar- 
gin for greater profit, and the incentive for a greater de- 
velopment of these old-time free ore deposits should be- 
come very much stronger. The stake now ahead of the 
prospector in the search for such deposits is one of sur- 
prising size and should tempt a large influx of men who 
are searching for opportunities where brains and work 
are the principal assets to be offered. Where men offer 
these, together with a reasonable amount of ambition and 
pluck, the opportunities that remain in the Joplin district 
will be found almost unlimited. 

FROM MINER TO OPERATOR VERY COMMON. 

It is a surprising fact that many miners in the Joplin 
district work a few months and then return to prospecting 
for this class of ore. If they are successful they need not 
work for wages any more. If they are unsuccessful or 
cannot complete the work before their stake runs out they 
sometimes go back to work for a while or take some other 
men into partnership who furnish the necessary money to 
complete the work. For years this policy has be£n fol- 
lowed by the miners of this district, and its results , have 
placed many men, formerly only wage earners, among the 
operating class. The expression "A miner today, an oper- 
ator tomorrow," is more than a mere rhetorical phrase in 
this field. It is the expression that opportunity still exists 
in this district for the small man, the prospector, the man 
whose only assets are brains, strength and ambition. 






CHAPTER VIII 

ZINC MINING OFFERS WIDE RANGE OF INVEST- 
MENT. 

Investment in zinc mining in the Joplin district stands 
in great contrast to investment in any other district and 
in any other kind of mining. This contrast is so great 
that it is striking even to the uninitiated and should mean 
a greater number of investments in this field when it is 
more generally known and understood. 

In the first place investments here are open to the 
individual operator on both a larger and smaller scale 
than in any other field. For instance, the man with only 
a pick and shovel and energy enough to work can invest 
his work in actual mining and secure returns upon it. The 
man of moderate means can also find a place either by 
himself or in company with others. The man with a capi- 
tal of $15,000 and upward can find places to operate inde- 
pendently. He can own a mine or mining fee all by him- 
self without associating with any partners or making his 
company a stock concern if he so desires. The point is 
that in this field there is not needed vast aggregations of 
capital to begin operations or carry the operations to a 
successful issue. 

FEW BIG COMPANIES IN JOPLIN DISTRICT. 

The number of operations involving the use of $200,- 
000 in capital for a single enterprise are not as numerous 
as those involving lesser sums. Upwards of this figure 
the enterprises engaged in mining grow smaller in num- 
ber and are confined mostly to the larger fee-owning and 
leasing companies rather than the operating class. So 
nearly has it become a law in this field for the operating 
companies to have small capitalizations that any new enter- 
prise with unusually large capital stock is looked upon with 
suspicion if there is any attempt to sell stock. 

There are few mining districts that have in them 
opportunities for the development of a mine to the produc- 
tion stage with as small a capital as the Joplin district. 
In how many camps could a shaft 200 feet deep be sunk 
at an average cost of $5 to $12 per foot? In how many 
camps or districts would a shaft equipment of hoist, boil- 
ers, cables, engines and housing be secured for the sum 
of $1,000 to $3,000? In how many instances outside of 

33 



the Joplin district could a concentrating plant of 100 to 
250 tons capacity be secured and erected for $8,000 to 
$25,000? Yet this district in the main consists of just 
such propositions. Of course there are instances where 
these items amount to huge sums, but in such cases there 
are either exceptional reasons or gross mismanagement. 

JOPLIN COSTS CONTRASTED WITH OTHER FIELDS. 

Contrast, if you please, these costs in other fields. 
Take shaft-sinking or tunnel-driving in the West, where 
the country rock is quartz or granite, where here it is 
shale, limestone and chert, and the depth under 300 feet. 
The veriest novice can appreciate the advantage of the 
Joplin operator. The cost of a shaft equipment which 
must be hauled miles over mountain roads and often in 
pieces on burros and which must be of such design as to 
meet conditions where the shaft will be from 400 to 1,000 
feet deep, is easily seen to greatly exceed the cost of the 
equipment needed in the Joplin field. Sometimes the cost 
of the shaft equipment in other fields exceeds even the cost 
of the entire Joplin mine and mill equipment. Then there 
remains the cost of the concentrating plant, which even 
where it is the very minimum is much greater than the 
cost of the Joplin mill. Joplin has the reputation of using 
machinery of smaller cost than any other district of its 
importance in America. 

Zinc mining in Colorado, Utah, Mexico and British 
Columbia all have to meet some of these difficult problems 
requiring costly mining machinery and heavy mining costs. 
Even where the most favorable mining is found there is 
often difficult separation problems which require costly 
concentrating machinery. 

Contrasted with copper mining, Joplin zinc mining is 
extremely simple and inexpensive. It is but necessary to 
point out the difference in the cost of production to realize 
this. It is safe to say that little copper is produced below 
a cost of 7 to 10 cents per pound, while the cost of spelter 
has not exceeded half that amount. Such a contrast is 
strongly in favor of the zinc producer in the Joplin dis- 
trict, for the greater the cost in production the more 
capital involved in the units of production. Taking the 
so-called copper "porphyries," which consist of the low- 
grade disseminated copper ores, the cost of production 
mounts very high and the amount of capital necessary to 
develop such a mine is very large, and the units of produc- 
tion must be large to insure profitable production. 

CAPITAL STOCK IN THOUSANDS, NOT MILLIONS. 

Another feature showing the desirability of investing 
in this field instead of copper mining is the difference in 

34 



the capital stock of the operating concerns. The corpora- 
tions successfully mining copper write their capital stock 
in millions, while the zinc corporations write theirs in 
thousands. Only the men of millions can "go it alone" in 
copper mining, while the field is open to the small investor 
only in the holding of inconsequential amounts of stocks 
which gives them practically nothing to say in the manage- 
ment of the property. In zinc mining in the Joplin dis- 
trict the field is open to a larger number of men of smaller 
means, and they can either directly look after their in- 
vestment or have a large share in the direction of the cor- 
poration which does the mining. This means greater 
security for the stockholders who invest in Joplin mines. 
The contrast holds good for lead, silver and gold mining. 
In those industries the aggregations of capital necessary 
to successful operation mount far above that needed in 
the Joplin district and thus take away from the small 
investor the opportunity for direct control of his invest- 
ment by minimizing his interests in a property until he 
is a mere atom among the stockholders. He is still an 
important factor in the management of the Joplin corpo- 
ration. 

The ease of mining in the Joplin field as compared 
with other districts and classes of mining means quicker 
returns on the investment. The time of mine develop- 
ment is short as compared with a copper mine, a lead 
mine or a gold mine in the West. An investor in a legiti- 
mate zinc mining proposition in the Joplin district doesn't 
have to wait years for a dividend, for the development 
work can usually be done through competent management 
within a period of one or two years. The development of 
a copper mine or lead mine in the West means a period 
of four to ten years before the dividend period is reached. 

COMPARISON OF SUCCESSES IN MINING FAVORS JOPLIN FIELD. 

The number of successful companies in copper mining 
is placed by Charles R. Keyes at one in five thousand. 
This is evidently an estimate of the entire copper indus- 
try. The number of successful zinc mines in the Joplin 
district so far exceeds this that the comparison is ridicu- 
lous. Just the number of successes as compared with the 
failures would be difficult to ascertain, as the data has 
never been compiled, but in this district the consensus of 
opinion of its own operators is that the successes in legiti- 
mate mining far outstrips the number of failures. 

It is worthy of thought that in this Joplin field the 
individual operator or small corporation is still the unit of 
production. This means a great deal in the. stimulation of 
individual effort. It means that opportunity has not been 
satisfied, that the field is yet virgin, that it is' yet in its 
very infancy. 

35 



Contrast, if you will, the Southeast Missouri lead dis- 
trict with the Joplin field. There the whole field is monop- 
olized by three or four companies, who not only do all the 
mining but hold the ownership of the vast acreage of land 
that is mineralized, and thus shuts out the small investor 
absolutely. Individual effort is stifled completely, for 
monopoly has complete control. Labor is cheap, and there 
is found the foreigner who supplants the American, and 
the district becomes one with decadent social conditions 
and a district lacking in civic progress. Its towns and 
cities lack the pride which would make them progressive, 
and they look poor and mean when compared with the 
modern cities of the Joplin district. The homes of the 
mine workers are not often their own but are rented and 
of inferior quality. As compared with the neat and com- 
fortable homes of the American workmen of the Joplin 
district, where there is no foreign labor, they are almost 
like dilapidated shacks. 

Investments in the Joplin mining field hold so many 
advantages over other fields and classes of mining that 
one who is familiar with it finds it difficult to understand 
how it has been kept out of the clutches of the great com- 
binations of capital. But be the reason good fortune or 
luck or something else, the fact remains that it is still the 
only field where the small investor finds opportunity be- 
side the large one, where monopoly has not found a foot- 
ing, and where development has only been sufficient to 
demonstrate its future greatness. 



36 



CHAPTER IX 

CONFIDENCE OF OLD INVESTORS IN ZINC MINING. 

Nothing inspires confidence so much as confidence does 
itself. If the one interested in a proposition is confident, 
the prospective man to be interested will become confident 
also. Confidence is in this sense contagious. It is always 
difficult to present a proposition in which the man who 
presents it has any doubt. The proposition is likely to 
inspire only doubt and failure. This natural law applies 
to all departments of life and is especially applicable in 
the commercial world. It is for this reason largely that 
the present prosperity of the Joplin mining district is 
growing by leaps and bounds. The whole secret lies in 
the fact that the men already engaged in the zinc mining 
industry of this district have realized the importance of 
the field they are in, and the confidence they have in it 
is so strong that not only are they building up a strong* 
and vital industry themselves but they are inspiring the 
feeling of confidence in every one with whom they come 
in contact. 

OLD INVESTORS INVEST HEAVILY. 

It means a great deal to the outside world when local 
capitalists make some of the largest mineral land purchases 
ever made in the district. Yet without exception all the 
big land investments that have been made during the 
past few months have been made by men who have been 
engaged in mining in this district for a number of years. 
They were the old investors. They have had experience 
and should know whether such investments are likely to 
prove of value. The purchase of the Leonard lands, in- 
volving the largest sale for many years, was made by men 
already largely interested in the field. 

The land purchases of the Playter interests during the 
last few months is another instance of the confidence being 
felt by the old investors in this field. These interests have 
been securing a large acreage of ground and are preparing 
to actively develop it into mineral producers. It is also 
a significant thing that most of these new investments 
are made in virgin lands considered to be favorably located 
with regard to old developed tracts. 

The Bendelari and Cook interests have been acquiring 
large land holdings throughout the mineral field during 

37 



the year. Only recently they purchased a tract in the 
Porto Rico field at a cost said to require the investment 
of $100,000. Nor is this all ; there are many others of the 
"old guard" who are investing heavily in the district's 
developed and undeveloped lands and mining properties. 

Another significant factor in the present exceptional 
development of the district lies in the new activities of old 
operating companies. Take the group of properties under 
the management of Charles T. Orr. Here is a group that 
is already actively engaged in widening its field of activ- 
ity. New leases will be developed, old ground reclaimed 
and worked, new land acquired, prospected and developed. 
New mills will be built and old ones rebuilt. In fact 
there will be expended a large investment in the mining 
field looking to increased operations and larger profits. 
This group represents some of the largest and most con- 
servative companies in the entire district. This is but one 
group, besides which may be named the American inter- 
ests, as well as many others. 

The perfect epidemic of small leases in nearly every 
camp of the district is an excellent criterion of the feeling 
felt among the small operators and miners. Throughout 
the Joplin, Duenweg, Galena and other shallow ground 
camps the small operator is seizing the opportunity to 
begin mining again, and all the land holders report that 
the demand for small leases has been exceptionally great. 
Old ground has been in great demand, for much of the 
old ground has shafts already down which may be utilized 
in many instances, and the very fact that it has once been 
productive makes it a favorable locality for prospecting 
work. 

But the leases being secured are not confined to the 
small operators. Some very large interests have been 
securing leases in various parts of the field. Here, too, is 
shown the apparent desire of the general public to enter 
upon new development enterprises. Such a movement 
means the inauguration of a large amount of prospect 
work during the winter and spring months, a large part 
of which is now already in progress. 

Such a movement on the part of the men who have 
been in the field for years has naturally begun to attract 
outside men to the opportunities to be secured. Within the 
district at the present time there are a large number of 
deals which are in progress for the buying of large tracts 
of land and some for developed leases. In some instances 
the transactions will run up well into thousands of dol- 
lars, while in others the investments are of less amounts. 
But the aggregate is assuming astonishing proportions. 
If all of the prospective purchases are made the advent 
of new capital into the district before the close of the 
year will surprise even the most optimistic. 

38 



What has been especially noteworthy in the rapid 
growth of the mining activity has been the distribution 
of the activity over the entire field. No particular camp 
can be said to have monopolized the activity. The report 
of new work has come from every camp. The extreme 
outside camps such as Aurora on the east, Miami on the 
southwest, Neck City on the north and Granby on the 
south, have been receiving almost as much attention as 
the older and more central camps. Galena reports remark- 
able growth,, as also does Webb City and Joplin. 

ACTIVITIES HAVE INCREASED OUTPUT. 

All of this activity is rapidly having its effect on 
increasing the production of the district. While the year 
started out with a production of practically 5,000 tons 
per week of zinc ore, the present weekly output has ad- 
vanced to over 6.000 tons, and the increase will continue. 
This concrete evidence of the confidence of the district's 
operators is indicative of the substantial profits now exist- 
ent in the mining industry. 

While it is important for any industry's future growth 
that investment should be made, it is essential that these 
investments should be wise ones. The district as a whole 
during the past year has been expressing general satisfac- 
tion at the good judgment displayed in the investments 
made. As pointed out, these investments have been largely 
made by men already heavily interested in the industry. 
Outside capital that enters this field should secure just as 
good investments as those already made. It is only neces- 
sary that in making their investments that they be made 
with the same degree of care, and the great majority of 
those already interested here will insist that such care 
be taken. The district does not desire any haphazard 
investments, for they are likely to fail and the blame be 
placed upon the district as a whole, wrongfully. The 
investor should use conservatism, he should investigate 
thoroughly, avoid the "curbstoners" and "seatwarmers," 
employ competent mining engineers who know the district, 
and when money is thus used the same confidence that 
at present inspires home capital will become a part of the 
capital that comes from afar. 



39 



CHAPTER X 

"INVESTIGATE" IS PASSWORD TO SUCCESSFUL 
INVESTMENT. 

The best ship that ever sailed the seas had barnacles 
that clung to it and impeded its progress. The larger the 
ship the more barnacles will it attract and the greater the 
problem of keeping the ship free from them. The zinc 
mining industry of the Joplin district forms a close anal- 
ogy to the above statement, owing to the fact that it is 
one of the most profitable and important in the industrial 
world, and it has attracted to it and bears the usual bur- 
den of barnacles that infest and prey upon all important 
fields of .industrial investment. But while the industry 
has them it is no worse than other classes of like invest- 
ments, and it is only necessary to be able to recognize 
them and prevent their doing the work of destruction 
which they are constantly striving to bring about. To this 
end the prospective investor can lend great assistance 
and not only reap for himself greater profits and free- 
dom from fraud, but render the district valuable service 
by helping to clean out and destroy these barnacles that 
infest the industry. 

FRAUDS ARE EXPOSED IN JOPLIN DISTRICT. 

While the Joplin district can truthfully boast of its 
great profits for the investors that have put their capital 
into the field, it had its "International" and "Consolidated 
Zinc," both of which the Joplin Globe had the honor to 
expose and show to the public their fraudulent purposes, 
thus saving to the district its good name and prospective 
investors countless thousands of dollars. The very fact 
that these exposures were made indicates that at heart the 
industry is sound and these instances of fraudulent pro- 
motions but barnacles that hinder and impede the indus- 
try's progress. 

NEVER CEASE INVESTIGATING. 

The prospective investor, to aid this movement of 
clearing off the barnacles, must be equipped with the nec- 
essary facts to recognize them and at least exercise com- 
mon sense in dealing with them. In the first place, the 
investor in this field should not take things for granted, 

40 



but should investigate every phase of an investment which 
is offered him with as much scrutiny as he would give an 
investment in the very industry in which he is engaged, 
or with which he is most familiar. This means investiga- 
tion, and if the investor is a stranger to mining the inves- 
tigation should be even more searching. In fact, the word 
"investigate" is the password to successful investment and 
it must be used from the very entrance to the field, through 
evcgy turn and throughout the entire life of the investment. 
In the first place, it means an understanding of that 
class of men which this district terms "curbstoners" and 
"seatwarmers." This field unfortunately has its quota of 
this vermin. They hang around in the hotel lobbies in 
wait for the prospective investor. They are proficient in 
the "gift of gab." They know the district and talk glibly, 
and are entirely engaging to the unsuspecting, but they 
end up with wanting to know the intentions of the party. 
They invariably know of "something good," into which 
they can by the majesty of their power and influence place 
the newcomer. If they cannot lead the newcomer into 
their net they "knock" the other fellow, or pursue the 
policy of going around to the other fellow and telling him 
that unless he divides the profits of the deal he will 
"knock" the property involved. These people and their 
tactics are so well known in every mining district that it 
seems strange to the inhabitants of a mining field that the 
outsider cannot see through the wiles of these men. Yet 
year after year goes by and despite the warnings of repu- 
table mining men, investors pass by their warnings and 
go off with such people, who only offer the worthless prop- 
erties, and when the investor finds out that he has lost his 
money he blames the entire district instead of the "curb- 
stoner." 

A UNIQUE REMEDY FOR CURBSTONER. 

A prominent Joplin mining man recently had occasion 
to examine a mine in the Ponto basin region of Arizona. 
He found the typical new mining camp perched up on 
the side of the gulch. He spent three or four days in the 
work of looking over the property and finding out all he 
could about it. Finally one evening just before he left 
the camp for home, he said to his host : "Well, sir, I have 
been in this camp four days and during that time not a 
single man has asked me what my business was, or has 
'butted in' on the mining deal which I have come to the 
camp to close up. I have been surprised, and I do not 
understand it. Can you tell me where the 'curbstoners' ' 
and 'knockers' of this camp have been while I have been 
here?" 

"Yes, sir," the man replied. "Do you see the little 
crosses planted over yonder on the other side of the gulch? 

41 



They mark the last resting place of the fellows who 'butted 
in' on the last mining deal made here. They 'butted in' on 
a couple of wise guys, who happened to know how to ad- 
minister cold lead effectively." 

The Joplin man came home and has told the story 
more than once, expressing the desire that all investors in 
this district were equally as wise. While the method may 
be harsh, the remedy for the eradication of such barnacles 
must of necessity be stringent, and both investor and local 
mining men should be less lenient than they are. 

LOOSE METHODS ARE VERY HARMFUL. 

Loose corporation management and lack of close in- 
spection on the part of investors in the companies in which 
they invest money is also a fruitful source of fraud. These 
conditions make it possible for the crooked promoter or 
mine manager to not only filch from the stockholders' 
money put up for development purposes, but often to ac- 
tually defraud them of the mine or lease itself, if the work 
done reveals that the property is especially desirable. How 
this may be done is illustrated by the following, which 
not only shows a crooked manager but- how investing 
stockholders neglect their own interests and then blame 
the district for their own faults. 

A CONCRETE CASE OF HOW IT HAPPENS. 

A mining company started out to develop a mine, and 
for awhile operated with fair success. A manager was 
introduced who suavely took part of the company's stock 
as an investment. He became a director, finally assuming 
all the prerogatives of managership, and unsuspecting 
stockholders did not put him under bond or place restraints 
upon him. The company began to have trouble with their 
development. The mill was stopped and a cry for more 
money for development was sent out to stockholders. Some 
money came in, but still there was no further production. 
The suave manager gave assurances in plenty. He wrote 
glowing accounts of what might be expected — if he only 
had the money for development. Finally stockholders are 
dumfounded by an announcement that unless work is at 
once commenced they will forfeit their lease. They hurry 
to and fro and hasten to see what is the matter. They 
are met with the announcement that the lease is practi- 
cally gone unless debts of the company can be wiped out 
immediately and ample funds provided for development 
purposes. There are hurried conferences, and then it 
develops that instead of working the property with the 
^ioney provided the manager has been merely paying him- 
self his salary regularly out of the funds provided instead 
of using them as far as they would go in developing the 
ground. 

42 



They next find that the most valuable mining lease 
they had has been sold to another company- or individual 
for a mere bagatelle by this manager, who suavely again 
states that he considered it better to sell the lease for a 
little sum than to lose it by forfeiture, because he had no 
money to work it. It later develops that the one purchas- 
ing it has transferred it to some company in which this 
suave manager has interests or has finally become its 
manager. 

THEY INVESTIGATE TOO LATE. 

Investigation, too late, proves that there are checks 
made out to men for work in the mine, indorsed only by 
the manager for the men. Men unknown to anyone have 
checks made to them which are not only indorsed by the 
unknown men but also by this manager. The fact at last 
dawns upon the investigators that the suave manager 
has padded his pay roll and stuck the money in his pocket. 
Every inference that the manager is a criminal is secured 
from the investigations made, but after all is done the 
investigating investors wonder if they can really hold the 
man responsible after giving him so much leeway and 
employing him without bond. They rail and swear at the 
conditions found out, but rather than shoulder the respon- 
sibility as they should they throw up their hands in disgust 
and try to throw the blame upon the district as a whole. 

A REAL REMEDY IS EVER AT HAND. 

Now what was really needed was for those investors 
to have so organized their company and so guarded their 
interests by careful investigation and constant scrutiny of 
its management that the first culpable act would have been 
at once detected and the man called to time. He should 
have been placed under bond or so hedged about with 
restrictions that he could not have squandered the com- 
pany's money nor sold its valuable holdings to another 
company of his own. In other words the investors in this 
typical case were every bit as much to blame as the man- 
ager. In fact their proverbial neglect breeds such con- 
temptible crooked managers. 

What this district desires is for every investor to 
watch his investment and thus help to clean out the indus- 
try instead of expecting the industry to render him profits 
and also act as policeman to guard his money and keep 
him out of foolish acts. 



43 



CHAPTER XI 

ALL BLIND INVESTMENTS ARE RISKY. 

Suppose a rich Western farmer went to New York to 
invest in Long Island real estate, how nearly does anyone 
think that he would be able to secure value received for 
his money? If he had any money left and went to buy 
a few diamonds, how many first-water gems would it be 
safe in saying that he would secure through his own 
selection? Suppose he had never seen an automobile, and 
started out to buy one, does anyone suppose that his un- 
aided selection would result in securing a machine with a 
value in proportion to the money expended? 

Now, take the supposition in addition to the above 
that the parties of whom the farmer might seek advice in 
making his investments were as ignorant as he about them. 
Suppose that someone might give him advice that was also 
interested in the articles to be sold. Suppose that some 
of the real estate men, some of the jewelers with whom 
the farmer would come in contact, were not dealing ex- 
actly "on the square." With these conditions what chance 
does the farmer stand of telling the good real estate from 
the poor, of picking out the real gems from the paste, of 
selecting the reputable dealers from the disreputable ones? 
He would doubtless lose considerable money, but he would 
come as near to making a good investment as the men 
who, absolutely ignorant of mining, go into a mining 
district and put their money into an investment under 
exactly parallel circumstances. 

The above supposition applies to investment in any 
field of endeavor and to all classes of men, but it seems 
to apply with especial force to mining investments. A 
farmer nor anybody else would scarcely invest in New 
York real estate without expert advice. No one not a 
connoisseur buys diamonds without expert advice. But 
50 per cent of mining investors put their money into 
mines and mining stocks without expert advice and expect 
to secure profitable investments in 90 per cent of their 
ventures. Such methods can never be satisfactory in any 
mining field, and the Joplin district is no exception. 

KNOWLEDGE IS REQUIRED. 

The valuation of a mining property is a question that 
requires considerable knowledge. The method of proper 
valuation is a profession in itself, and the mining engi- 
neer and mining expert are indispensable for that reason. 

44 



The value of a mine is dependent upon the income which 
it will provide, just as a piece of real estate or a business 
block in a city. If the mine will return the principal and 
a profitable rate of interest on a certain sum within a 
certain period of time, it is worth at least that principal. 
Of course, in mining, especially some classes of . mining, 
there is a contingent risk, a risk which involves the chance 
of depreciation of profits or a tremendous increase in the 
profits. But the man who invests money in mining prop- 
erty merely on the basis of risk is not making a mining 
investment — he is making a "mining gamble." He who 
takes these "risks" with his eyes open needs no word of 
caution, but the man who really desires to make conserva- 
tive mining investments should take the necessary precau- 
tion to know all about the property that advice from com- 
petent authority can give. 

To arrive at the value of the profits of a mine involves 
a knowledge of what are the actual costs of production and 
whether those costs are excessive or normal. It involves 
a knowledge of estimating the ore body exposed. It in- 
volves the ability of analyzing the conditions of ore deposi- 
tion, prospecting accomplished and whatever other facts 
go into the making of the probable extent of the deposit 
and the life of the mine. When these facts are all ascer- 
tained he should be able to intelligently interpret the data 
and say whether the price demanded for the property is 
within the limits shown by the mine's percentage of profit. 

The above task is not within the possibility of the lay- 
man. It is strictly a task for the mining engineer or the 
man who, though not having that appellation profession- 
ally, at least has had the training and experience that 
has given him the requisite knowledge. In addition there 
are two other requisites, and they are honor and honesty. 
Upon this class of men falls the duty of supplying the ad- 
vice which will guide the investor and protect him from 
unwise investment. 

ALWAYS CONSULT COMPETENT MINING ENGINEERS. 

Any investment of consequence should be made strictly 
on the advice of a competent mining engineer. His advice 
will add only a certain amount to the total sum of the 
investment if it is made, and by his sanction there is added 
a certain guarantee of safety, and if his advice condemns 
the investment, the price of his service has saved his client 
the loss of a much greater sum. In addition, his elucida- 
tion of the conditions of the property in which his client 
invests will provide that client with a certain fund of 
knowledge which will help him not only in the under- 
standing of his investment, but should guide him in the 
proper channels for the securing of the maximum benefits 
from his investment, a thing which otherwise would have 

45 



to be learned often at a great sacrifice of both time and 
money. An honest expert report is worth a great deal 
more than it costs. 

BEWARE OF GRATUITOUS ADVICE. 

Then, in addition to an engineer's advice, there is 
often opportunity to secure the distinguished advice of 
reputable mining men in the camp. One should be dis- 
criminating in ascertaining where to secure such advice. 
But a few days' visit with an aptness for investigation will 
develop the proper sources to secure such counsel. Be sure 
you will have to look up such advice, for advice worth hav- 
ing is not thrust upon one. On the contrary, the pros- 
pective investor will find that the gratuitous advice which 
will be offered so freely will come from the "curbstoners" 
and "seatwarmers," the class of men who not only deal in 
the questionable mines and properties, but "knock" every 
legitimate proposition. The Joplin district, as every other 
mining district, unfortunately has a certain number of 
these undesirables. For this reason it becomes all the 
more necessary for the outside investor to seek the expert 
advice of a competent mining engineer and reputable 
mining mn. 

DISTRICT DESIRES WISE INVESTMENTS. 

The substantial mining interests of the district are 
desirous that the outside investor should not invest his 
money blindly in this field. They realize through the years 
of experience that an investor who is unwise or who is 
misled in his investment is not only a direct loss to the 
field, but becomes an avowed enemy, and forever injures 
it. It becomes then not only a desire to see fair play for 
the outside capital, but it is decidedly self-interest for the 
district when it desires outside capital to avoid blind in- 
vestments. Every reputable mining man in the district 
advises that investment be made carefully, be made on the 
advice of honorable, honest mining engineers or competent 
mining men. 

While there are many opportunities for profitable in- 
vestment in the Joplin mining district, no guarantee can 
be given to the investor who invests blindly. No assur- 
ance can be given that an investor in mines or mining 
lands will secure value for money paid who does not se- 
cure the advice of a competent mining engineer or mining 
man. But when the investor seeks investment with the 
aid of competent advisers he will not only find a substan- 
tial welcome from the district, but he will secure the 
profits he desires on his investment, and his chances for 
loss are reduced to the minimum. 



46 



CHAPTER XII 

VALUE OF THE GEOLOGISTS' WORK. 

The mining industry of the world stands as a monu- 
ment to the zeal of the prospector. To him it owes its 
birth and its early growth. To him it owes its world-wide 
extent and importance. To him also is entrusted the fu- 
ture growth. With such past accomplishments the world 
feels that its future for mineral needs will be met by these 
sturdy men, who have ever climbed the hills and pried out 
of them the secrets of their mineral stores. Out of the 
experience of years of prospecting and mining there has 
been built up a fund of knowledge, which forms the basis 
for the profession of the mining geologist. He is not 
strictly a prospector, but he is learned in all the lore of 
the prospector; he is equipped with every practical thought 
that has been the outcome of past experience in prospect- 
ing. In addition he is equipped with the ability to analyze 
a given set of conditions and generalize broadly, thus not 
only giving expert advice on single instances, but giving 
facts that would help in formulating a working policy on 
more than a single property. 

The Joplin district has been built up largely through 
the work of the numberless small prospectors, who have 
searched diligently and have been rewarded handsomely 
by the finding of some of the greatest mining bonanzas 
the country has ever known. They have not only made 
wealth for themselves but they have, through their efforts, 
developed a great industry upon which many men depend 
for a livelihood. The work has provided a field for invest- 
ment which is unsurpassed for the conservative investor. 
Yet the work of these prospectors did not follow any sys- 
tematic plan or policy; it has been accomplished solely by 
individual effort directed along practical lines. 

DATA NOW AVAILABLE TO EVERYONE. 

For years the practical prospector has labored in this 
field unassisted by a generalization of the data which ex- 
isted in such profusion, but the day finally came when the 
data was systematized and is at last available for those 
who will take the trouble to investigate. This latter work 
was done by the United States and Missouri and Kansas 
geologists, who have helped materially in placing this great 
fund of practical prospecting knowledge in a form avail- 
able to every man who desires it or recognizes its value. 

47 



It is free from any commercial prejudices, because done 
by public servants, and represents work which could only 
be done advantageously by the public for its own good. 

A great many mining men have an idea that the report 
of a geologist is totally theoretical; that he deals with 
theories; that he is the very antithesis of practical. Such 
a conception is farthest from the truth. He is concerned 
alone with the facts. He hunts up and familiarizes him- 
self with the knowledge of every prospector and miner in 
the field. He compiles all these facts as a disinterested 
judge, carefully sorting out the facts from the fancies and 
hobbies of each miner and prospector. He learns not only 
the condition that prevails in one mine or in several but 
in all. He secures not only one set of drill records, but 
those that cover every condition of ground found in the 
field. 

WHAT THE GEOLOGIST SHOWS. 

He constructs maps showing, as accurately as the data 
will provide, the mines and mine workings. He shows 
on those maps the outlines of the proved mineral territory 
as demonstrated by drill records. He indicates in addition 
the kind and distribution of the surface rocks. He shows 
the surface contour. He may indicate the depth of any 
prevailing stratum of rocks which is shown from mine or 
drill records. In other words, he places at the disposal of 
everyone all the known facts about the mining district and 
one can draw his own conclusions. With any given set 
of facts everyone does draw certain conclusions if they 
have logical minds, and the geologist who is trained along 
his line draws certain conclusions which seem warranted. 
He may be wrong, but if he is, it is usually due to the fact 
that the data upon which the conclusion was based was 
inadequate rather than any mistake in the method of reas- 
oning. That is but the error of all practical deductions, 
for in any field any increase in the knowledge available 
may change the methods of development in it. Such work 
systematizes the entire fund of knowledge and the miner 
or operator who fails to make use of it fails to properly 
inform himself and provide safeguards for his company's 
stockholders. 

The future prospecting in the district, therefore, 
should not only be done along practical lines, but it should 
have the advantage of the great fund of knowledge gleaned 
from the prospectors and miners who have been studying 
this district from its inception. It should make use of the 
systematized facts relating to the occurrence of ore depos- 
its, and the practical operator and miner will find such 
information not only of great assistance in his work, but 
will also have the satisfaction in knowing that he is not 
going along blindly. He has a check upon his work which 

48 



represents the combined experience of every miner and 
prospector that has ever operated in the field. 

UNIQUE CONDITIONS IN JOPLIN DISTRICT. 

Old prospectors and mine operators will tell you that 
the conditions met in this field are much different from 
those met in other fields. The mining engineers, who have 
been called upon to examine properties have found condi- 
tions unknown in other fields. The district has its own 
peculiar traits, and its ore deposits must be found and 
developed according to methods developed here. For this 
reason the outside mining engineer who comes into the 
district to make a mine examination is at sea for some 
time. He finds it difficult to analyze conditions totally out 
of his acquaintance, and for that reason the outside engi- 
neer often makes mistakes. The local mining engineers, 
who have had a long experience, are thus best equipped to 
meet the problems found in this field. The outside investor 
who comes to Joplin should, therefore, either secure the 
advice of a local mining engineer, or of one who has had 
considerable experience in this district. 

The future prospecting of the district should bring 
great growth to the field. The knowledge now available 
is sufficiently systematized and the methods so well known 
that the number of failures should be minimized and the 
chances for success greatly increased. This in itself means 
an accelerated growth, and with a general application of 
practical prospecting the outlook for the investor is greatly 
enlarged. He not only has a larger field, but that field is 
safer and promises a ' greater return. He also has the 
means within his power to safeguard his interests by fa- 
miliarizing himself with the knowledge which is now 
available. 



49 



CHAPTER XIII 

VALUE OF THE PRACTICAL IN ZINC MINING. 

We learn by doing things in mining as in most every- 
thing else. It is for this reason that mining should be 
approached always from the practical side. One may 
have all sorts of ideas about mining and the methods 
which might produce better results, but their application 
without first knowing the practical side is likely to meet 
with the worst failures, even though the ideas may have in 
them great promise. The essence of the matter is that 
the practical is the foundation upon which all industries 
are built, and any attempts to court successful mining 
must take cognizance of these primary principles. 

The mining industry of the Joplin district has been 
built up out of the experience of many men and their 
accumulated knowledge through a long period of years. 
The judgment of the best operators has been passed 
successively upon all innovations, and trials given the 
suggestions and ideas of the multitude of men who 
thought they had something to offer as an improvement. 
The years have thus sifted down the methods offered until 
the practice has become entirely feasible in all general 
conditions found throughout the district. The practice, 
while not perfect and it is recognized that it is far from 
being so yet, meets conditions as it has never met them 
before, and for this reason should be the working founda- 
tion for everyone attempting mining in this field. 

DUBBED JOPLIN METHODS "CRUDE." 

For many years the operators have been subjected to 
the jeering of men, who came into this field from other 
mining fields or of men who at once dubbed the mining 
practice of the Joplin district "crude," whether they had 
ever done mining or not. They asked why the mining and 
milling practice was not up to the standard of the copper, 
gold and silver mining districts, or why it was not car- 
ried on in the same way. The answer is simple: merely 
that zinc mining and milling in the Joplin district was a 
vastly different problem from the ones mentioned, and the 
men engaged in its solution had already found that out 
years ago and were now engaged in working out the in- 
dustry's problems practically. Where these kickers failed 

50 



to appreciate the truth of this answer they often paid 
dearly for the lesson which they had to learn. It would 
not be so bad for them to pay for their experience, even 
dearly, if they accepted the lesson at its true value and 
took up the work at last in its right way. But the trouble 
comes in the fact that after they have lost money by their 
experiments they either pull up stakes and leave the dis- 
trict with words of disapproval or start out along the 
same lines and lose again. 

HISTORY VINDICATES THE PRACTICAL. 

Surely the history of the district's progress is a clear 
account of how the growth of the district has been along 
practical lines. The early mining was confined to shallow 
deposits, the returns from which were within the limits of 
the price paid for the product. Had the deeper mining 
then been attempted it would have failed. The early meth- 
ods of concentration were confined to hand picking and 
hand jigging. The expensive mill of today would have 
been entirely impracticable in those days. The amount 
of losses in the sludge ores of the early concentration were 
heavy, but the use of concentrating tables were then im- 
practicable and the actual failure of a number of early 
installations is only a corroboration of the truth of the 
principle. 

Yet the practice has improved. The deeper levels 
have been opened up, the sheet-ground mines are now 
running, there are huge milling plants in place of hand- 
jig plants, there are large sludge mills and machinery in- 
stallations for the treatment of the fine ores lost in the 
early operations. All of this has come slowly. It was 
built up on the basis of the practical application of the 
new methods. When the method was tried and found 
justified by results, it became a part of the general fund of 
information which was given general approval. This rep- 
resents the foundation upon which to build. 

INVESTOR SHOULD NOT BLAME DISTRICT FOR HIS MISTAKES. 

It then becomes almost farcical for the outside in- 
vestor to come in and rail about the methods employed, 
when he does not have the experience which the district 
has had. It places squarely upon him alone the responsi- 
bility of the mistakes he may make and the losses he may 
incur to himself and stockholders. The district cannot 
be held responsible for the experimental fancies of men 
who believe they know more about the methods that should 
be employed than the accumulated experience of all the 
district's operators. When such failures occur, however, 
it devolves upon the district to bear with what equanimity 
it can, the accusation that the fault lies wholly in the 
district, and recite the actual facts. 

51 



These experimental methods are eminently good for 
the district, where they are employed with the right spirit. 
For instance, out of these experiments grew the improve- 
ments on jigs. The use of the modern jig is now part and 
parcel of approved methods, resulting in an improved mill- 
ing practice. 

It is, therefore, of great importance that outside in- 
vestors recognize the value of the practical in coming into 
this field, for upon such recognition depends largely their 
chances for profitable operation. The experience of the 
district should be first absorbed and a solid foundation 
made before any experiments are undertaken. This sys- 
tem makes for the peace of mind not only of the investors, 
but of the substantial mining men of the district who are 
trying to build up a stable industry, and whose efforts are 
partially invalidated by the lack of co-operation by new 
investors who ignore the practical. 



ELEVEN YEARS' SHIPMENTS OP ZINC AND LEAD, 

IN TONS, WITH SEPARATE AND 

COMBINED VALUES 

Zinc Ores Value Lead Ores Value Comb. Value 

1909 301,206 $ 12,192,770 44,186 $ 2,420,878 $ 14.615.048 

1908 259.598 8,917.073 39.119 2.152,896 11.069.969 

1907 286,587 12,521,522 42,034 2.898,405 15,419,727 

1906 278,929 12.079,602 39.188 3.049.573 15,128,175 

1905 252,435 11,334.320 31.679 1,968.480 13,302,800 

1904 267.240 9.601,200 34,362 1.886.150 11,487.350 

1903 234,873 7,920.520 28.656 1.550 870 9.471,395 

1902 262,545 7.973,770 31,625 1,457,120 9,430.890 

1901 258,306 6.353,950 35.177 1,617.700 7,971,650 

1900 248.446 6.584,290 29.132 1,407.810 7.992.106 

1899 255,088 9.590.456 23.888 1,272.008 10,715.305 

Totals 22.905,253 $105,069,473 379,046 $21,681,890 $126,604,415 



52 



CHAPTER XIV 

COMPETENT MINE MANAGEMENT ESSENTIAL TO 

SUCCESS. 

So much has been said and written on mine manage- 
ment, not only of mining in the Joplin district, but every- 
where, that it would appear that the mining public as well 
as investing public would have familiarized itself with 
at least the rudiments that go to make up successful man- 
agement. Yet, in spite of this dissemination of knowledge, 
there occur annually the failures whose cause lies pri- 
marily at the hands of the incompetent manager or the 
people who placed him in charge of the mine. It makes 
no difference how rich a mine one may have in this district, 
or any other, the investors in it have little chance for their 
money if they insist upon putting in a manager who is 
ignorant of mining. Even today, with every condition in 
.favor of profitable mining in the Joplin district, there are 
going to be some failures and these failures in the majority 
of cases are directly traceable to incompetence and igno- 
rance of mining on the part of the men in charge. Yet 
when the failure comes these same investors will be likely 
to lay the blame promiscuously upon the district as a whole, 
when in reality the fault lies directly at their own doors. 

Competency and expert knowledge are just as neces- 
sary in mining as in any other industry. That statement 
is an axiom which seems to be unnoted or unknown to many 
of the investors in this district. That it is at least disre- 
garded is shown by the fact that we find men buying min- 
ing properties and then sending barbers, grocers, real estate 
men, young untrained sons of the family, relations who 
are failures in other lines of business, to manage the prop- 
erty and make it a dividend payer! They send anybody 
from any line of business except a trained mining man and 
expect the mine to become a bonanza^ One might as well 
try to blow up the Colossus of Rhodes with a fire-cracker 
as to expect such managers to make any kind of mining 
pay. 

STORY OF THE DIVIDEND MINE. 

Here is the history of the old Dividend mine, which 
is known as one of the greatest the district has ever had. 
The eastern investors in this property sent out as their 

53 



first manager the former keeper of a woodyard in a little 
Massachusetts town, with the expectation that he would 
send back dividends. He didn't do it. Finding a wood- 
man unfitted for the place, the investors next pinned their 
faith on a tailor, but for once a tailor could not "deliver 
the goods." He tried for fifteen long months, backed by 
the money of the faithful back in the East. A mine pro- 
moter was next installed, but after expending $3,500 of 
the stockholders' money, he advised a sale out of the snarl 
of misfortunes brought about by the multifarious man- 
agers. Their patience, as also their money, was fortunate- 
ly not expended entirely before they learned the lesson 
that to do mining successfully it should be done under the 
managment of a competent mining man. When the lesson 
was finally learned the mine became one of the most fa- 
mous producers and paid some of the largest dividends 
on the investment that have ever been paid. Yet these 
dividends came within a very small margin of being en- 
tirely lost through the employment of men who were un- 
fitted for the work because of their ignorance of mining. 

This sketch is but representative of many in the field, 
except that its final success happened to be early enough 
for the first investors to reap the profits instead of the 
losses. But the inference to be gained from this is suffi- 
cient to indicate what is at the basis of many of the 
failures in this district as well as other mining fields. 

THERE ARE MANY PROBLEMS TO SOLVE. 

There are enough problems in the mining industry 
to test the knowledge and experience of the best trained 
and most practical mining men without leaving them to 
the incompetent and untrained. These problems often 
prove difficult for our oldest and most experienced. What 
can one expect from men who never saw a mine when 
such problems confront them, and they are fully responsi- 
ble for their solution? Merely failure. Not because they 
don't honestly try to meet the problems, but because they 
are not equipped with the knowledge and experience nec- 
essary to meet the situation. It is frequently a pitiable 
sight to see the predicaments into which some of these 
poor, inexperienced managers and superintendents fall. 
Some of them realize their incompetence, but after once 
assuming the management they feel obliged to live up to 
the confidence reposed in them and they hope to be able 
to learn the business soon enough to rectify their mis- 
takes; but it takes a number of years to absorb the nec- 
essary knowledge and obtain the experience, and few min- 
ing companies can stand the drain long enough to let their 
manager become educated in his work. 

Mine management is more than mere bookkeeping. It 
involves a knowledge of actual operations. Unless the 

54 



manager really does know actual mining, he will not re- 
ceive the respect of his workmen, and he will soon find 
himself being fooled on every hand. Inefficiency is bred 
in all departments of the mine until the company's pay 
roll becomes a "pension benefit'' instead of payment for 
services rendered. This is true of any business where 
professional knowledge is necessary and is not confined 
to mining in any district. For this reason it is essential 
that the manager be a competent mining man. 

MANAGEMENT NOT A BOOKKEEPING JOB. 

Bookkeeping systems of accurate cost-keeping are es- 
sential parts of mine management, but they alone are in- 
adaquate without the ability to analyze the cost figures, 
and without the knowledge of whether they come within 
the limits of ordinary mining practice. The latter is more 
valuable, for such knowledge would keep the expenditures 
right whether the books showed it or not. The cost-keep- 
ing systems, however, help all concerned in making it 
possible to demonstrate mathematically the condition of the 
mine. It is worth money to know that the powder cost 
per ton is 20 cents instead of 50 cents; that cost of hard 
iron is 17 cents instead of 35 cents per ton, and so all 
along the line. But it is worth still more money to know 
that 18 to 20 cents per ton for powder is good practice in 
sheet ground. Moreover, it is worth money to have that 
knowledge at the beginning of operations instead of months 
afterward. In fact, the failure of the mine may come 
just because that knowledge was not known by the man- 
ager early enough. 

Surely the experience of the past thirty years in 
mining has demonstrated that mine management should 
be in no other hands than trained mining men, be that 
training acquired as it may. Experience is a necessary 
factor for successful management. Mining must be done 
on conservative business lines, just as any other industry 
is conducted. It cannot be handled by the ignorant and 
incompetent, and the failures accruing from these causes 
are more than from any other source. Such failures 
should not be laid upon the industry as an industry but 
placed squarely where it belongs — upon the shoulders of 
investors who disregard every business law when they 
place in control of their investment men who are ignorant. 

A POINT FOR THE PROMOTER. 

When men who introduce capital into this field insist 
upon the investment being safe-guarded by the intelligent 
management of competent mining men, such investments 
will return better dividends and curtail the losses. It will 
also be the cause of more capital entering the field. When 
investors realize that mining in the Joplin district and 

55 



elsewhere is an industry where competence and knowledge 
are as much needed as in manufacturing, they will learn 
that it is the part of wisdom to see that their invest- 
ments are placed under a management skilled in mining. 
They will also learn that by such management their capi- 
tal will return profits where it hitherto has been lost. 
Instead of condemning mining in the Joplin district as a 
hazardous class of investment they will find, as the dis- 
trict's mining men have found, that conservative invest- 
ments under competent management have rendered splen- 
did profits as few other investment have done. 



HIGHEST AND AVERAGE PRICES PER TON OP ZINC 

AND LEAD DURING THE PAST 

ELEVEN YEARS 

ZINC LEAD 

High Average. High Average 

1909 $55.00 $42 20 $60.00 $54.78 

1908 47.00 34.40 66.00 55.03, 

1907 53.50 43.68 88.50 68.90 

1906 54,00 43.30 87.00 7778 

1905 60.00 44.88 80.00 62.12 

1904.... 53.00 35.92 62.00 54.80 

1903 42.00 33 72 60.50 54.12 

1902 42.00 30.33 50.00 46.10 

1901 34.00 24.21 47.50 45.99 

1900..... 38.50 26.50 56.50 48.82 

1899 55.00 36.61 55.00 51.32 



56 



CHAPTER XV 

ROYALTIES— A QUESTION TO BE SOLVED. 

The question of royalties to be paid in the Joplin 
district, while one of the most important both to the 
prospective investor and to the district itself, is one ap- 
proached with considerable temerity by even the best in- 
formed and oldest operators in the mining field. Wrapped 
up in the question are so many varying shades of pecuniary 
interest to so many different factors in the industry that 
it is absolutely necessary in any discussion to observe 
carefully the interests of all. Unless one deals with abso- 
lute fairness, and even when this is done, he is likely to 
provoke a storm of disapproval both from the beneficiaries 
of his contentions and from those that produce the evils 
which he seeks to correct. Perhaps, it is this very inti- 
mate relationship of the different interests affected that 
makes the question one of such vital import, and for that 
reason so insidious in its evil effects where misapplied. 

For instance, the landowner is the first and foremost 
figure in the royalty question. He is followed closely by 
the first lessee, who is in turn followed by sub-lessees in 
an endless chain. Each has certain civil rights accruing 
either from ownership or contract. Each has certain rights 
accruing from the place he occupies in the carrying on of the 
mining industry. It is in the complications arising from 
the fact that certain rights which are part of the industry 
are alienated, destroyed or so damaged by the applica- 
tion of civil rights that the natural development of the 
industry may be hindered. In the protection of the natural 
rights of the industry there is as much need for fairness 
as in the protection of the civil rights, and it is only by 
the protection and safeguarding of these natural rights 
that the outside investor can be assured of endless op- 
portunity in the Joplin mining district. 

NATURAL AND CIVIL RIGHTS INVOLVED. 

To make the question still clearer a concrete in- 
stance may be taken. It is a natural right for the land- 
owner to demand a royalty and exact it. It is also a civil 
right for the landowner to demand that the royalty be as 
large as he pleases, but the moment he passes beyond a 
reasonable royalty he invades the natural rights of the 

57 



industry and the conflict is precipitated. TKe whole propo- 
sition resolves itself into deciding the maximum point to 
which royalties may be raised and guarantee an observ- 
ance of all the natural rights of those concerned. 

It does not take an expert to see that if the royalties 
exacted are too high, the mining industry suffers at the 
greed of the landowner, or the one who exacts the royalty 
beyond the reasonable point. The operator of the mine 
will stagger along under the load just as long as there 
is any hope of making a profit, but when that hope is 
gone he will throw up his hands and quit. He thus incurs 
a heavy loss to himself or stockholders. He will not only 
shut down so much of the industry, but he will thus 
antagonize the investors in that mine toward any further 
investment in that industry. The owner of the land suf- 
fers because the stoppage of operations on his land places 
a ban upon it for future operations. There is general loss 
to all concerned by the invasion of the economic or natural 
rights of the mining industry by the exactions of too high 
a rate of royalty. 

CONCERTED EFFORT IS NEEDED. 

Surely the evil effects of too high rates of royalty 
are patent without further elucidation. What the indus- 
try as a whole desires is a general recognition of the 
evil and a concerted effort by the parties responsible in 
putting a stop to this block in the way of the district's 
further development. Enough capital has been lost, enough 
land condemned, and capital frightened away to stagger 
the most blatant, swaggering, royalty shark if he will 
sit down and think the matter over. The same problem 
if thought over as carefully by the prospective investor 
would also have saved him his money, and the investors 
in the district have just as much a part in solution of 
this question as anyone, and to their utter lack of proper 
investigation and employment of competent engineering 
advice may be ascribed a large part of the blame for the 
development of the question at all. 

What is needed in the solution of the problem is 
but a proper understanding of the principles of rent, 
royalty and interest, together with an accurate knowledge 
of the cost of mining. Royalties paid should be large 
enough to pay a profitable rate of interest on the money 
invested in the land and the final return of the principal. 
However, the land should yield to the man paying the 
royalty a profitable rate of interest on the money he in- 
vests in the operation upon it, plus the royalty paid the 
owner of the land. In other words, the essence of the 
whole matter is that the landowner and his lessee are 
partners, in which the landowner has furnished the money 
to buy the land and the mine operator has furnished the 

58 



money to develop the mine and carry on the operations. It 
is really a matter of equitably dividing the profits which 
the combined efforts of the landowner and operator have 
made. 

HOW TO ASCERTAIN EQUITIES. 

To ascertain the equity of each in the profits of the 
concern demands a knowledge of the investment in the 
land, or the land's value. When that is done, the basis of 
the landowner's claim is established. It then is necessary 
to calculate the actual investment of the operator in doing 
the development work, and when that is done to work 
out the cost of producing the ore. It is also a matter of 
concern to calculate the life of the deposit and know the 
life of the lease. This then forms the material basis for 
the claims of the mine operator. But in addition to this 
there are other considerations which must be observed. 
The risk which the mine operator takes in the develop- 
ment of a mine is a vital part of his investment. That 
risk is one which in the money world demands a higher 
rate of interest in return. That risk is not so great a 
part of the landowner's risk. He has his land for future 
mining or other purposes, whether this lessee is success- 
ful in his venture or not. These facts outline the basis 
upon which the equitable division of the profits may be 
made. 

Anyone who does not follow such a system in his esti- 
mate of whether a lease is a profitable venture or not, 
works upon a basis of speculation. Unfortunately, while 
the above facts are in a dim way recognized by almost 
everyone, they are not always used in the determination 
of lease values. In a general way only have they ever 
found expression. It has seemed to be forgotten, and 
owners and leasers have fallen into the habit of consid- 
ering the proposition as merely a lease, which may be bar- 
gained for at 10, 121/2. 15, 20, 25 and 30 per cent, the 
dickering depending upon speculative values entirely, or 
the ability of the landowner to make the exactions. Of 
course, there is a general idea that virgin land should be 
at a low rate of royalty and developed land at a higher 
rate; that sheet ground should be lower than the shallow 
"free" deposits. These are but the most general recogni- 
tions of correct values, while the real principles are 
ignored. 

THE INVESTMENT AND RISK. 

Economically, it is not a question of so many per cent 
royalty for one class of ground or another; it is a ques- 
tion of whether the profits are equitably distributed in 
accordance with the capital invested and the risk sustained. 
Let the royalty be paid as so much of the gross earnings, 

59 



or so much of the net earnings. It should always be the 
portion equitably belonging to the landowner. When this 
principle of estimating the values of leases is put into 
force by investors generally, losses will be less frequent. 
It will stop the practice of sub-leases to a great extent, as 
it will show more completely the margin of profit. The 
practice of sub-leasing has grown almost into a disease, 
which needs careful and perhaps more radical treatment. 
Such methods are solely in the hands of the investor and 
should be used by him not only for his own protection, 
but for the good of the industry. When used for awhile 
judiciously there should be a material reduction in royal- 
ties, which should guarantee not only more profitable oper- 
ation but a greatly extended activity all over the field. 

It seems strange that more large land-owning com- 
panies have not followed the lead of the more progressive 
in lowering royalties during 1908. A few of the 
more progressive in Galena, Joplin and Webb City camps 
lowered their royalties materially, the movement being 
brought about by the falling off of operations during the 
panic months. The return of activities has shown the 
wisdom of dividing more equitably the profits of mining. 
Equitable division of mining profits can only mean more 
prosperity for the industry, as a whole, by guaranteeing 
equity to the investing capital, and investing capital can 
render itself and the industry no better service than by 
insisting upon such division of profits upon the basis of 
correct principles of investment. 



60 



CHAPTER XVI 

IMPORTANCE OF LEAD MINING IN JOPLIN 
DISTRICT. 

Few realize the importance of the lead mining in the 
Joplin district because zinc mining has so completely over- 
shadowed it. Yet the lead product alone is of no mean 
consequence and plays a very large part in the building up 
of the entire mining industry of the field. Its importance 
consists not only in the tonnage produced and its value 
in dollars and cents, but its association with the zinc de- 
posits in many instances provides the additional value 
which may make the mine a profitable one. In any con- 
sideration of the value of an investment in the Joplin 
district it is very important that the relation of the lead 
produced to the total zinc produced be thoroughly under- 
stood. 

At this time the production of lead is equal to about 
one-sixth of the zinc blende. This is taking into consid- 
eration the production of the district as a whole. In some 
camps there is a radical difference from this average. 
Some camps produce scarcely any lead at all, while in 
others the percentage of lead goes very high. The pro- 
duction relations are changed slightly every year by the 
prices that are paid for the products. If lead prices are 
abnormally high the production from the strictly lead 
camps leaps upward and the percentage for the district 
is affected. The change in zinc ore prices does not so 
greatly affect the relation of the two outputs owing to 
the fact that when zinc is mined there is always a certain 
amount of associated lead which keeps near a normal. It 
is the strictly lead producing mines that work the changes. 
MORE IMPORTANT THAN CALAMINE. 

As compared with the calamine or silicate output, 
the lead is very much more important. In tonnage it is 
approximately one and three-fifths times as great. Its 
relation to the district's total mineral output is thus sec- 
ond in tonnage. 

The valuation of the output for 1909 is slightly more 
than a fifth of the zinc blende value. Taking the blende 
and calamine values together the relation is almost exactly 
a fifth. The lead output is valued at practically four 
times that of the calamine ores. This relation in 1908 

61 



was still more in favor of lead owing to the higher rela- 
tive prices for lead ores throughout that year and the 
reversal of the prices in 1909. But the showing here made 
is sufficient to make the comparison of the three ores 
clear. For 1909 the actual lead tonnage was 44,186 tons, 
with a value of $2,420,878, which is no inconsiderable sum. 
This is the largest output in the district's history and 
shows the growth of lead mining. The fact that this 
ore usually brings from $10 to $20 more on the ton than 
does zinc blende ore makes its mining alone a much more 
profitable proposition than zinc mining as long as the 
deposit lasts. 

The shallow deposits of this ore are the ones which 
are strictly lead producers. These, when found, are verit- 
able bonanzas for their discoverers. They have been found 
from the very surface down to 60 feet. Below that depth 
there is a likelihood of association with zinc blende or 
calamine ores. As these shallow deposits usually occur 
in residual clays or greatly weathered chert, the cost of 
mining is the very minimum of all mining costs in this 
district. Shaft sinking is very easy and the drifting is 
never difficult. Since the ground is soft, some timbers 
must be used, but the shallow depths and short lives of the 
deposits make heavy timbering unnecessary. Pumping 
scarcely ever has to be done, the water being beaten with 
a barrel, or if in the region of deeper mining operations 
there will be no water at all. 

EXCEPTIONALLY LOW PRODUCTION COST. 

Ores taken from such shallow deposits may be actually 
mined and placed on the market at a cost not to exceed 
$5 to $15 per ton while the deposit is being worked. Pre- 
liminary prospecting is not included in the above cost fig- 
ures. With such records a matter of common knowledge 
throughout the district, there is a certain class of miners 
that follow that line of mining year in and year out. Since 
lead ores sell from $50 to $80 per ton the profits on such 
mining are very great and are sufficient to entice anyone 
into the business. That the business is greatly prized is 
shown in the way numbers of miners will flock into a 
camp where such a shallow strike of ore has been made. 
As many as forty shafts going down at once on a 40-acre 
tract have been noted immediately after the discovery of 
such a deposit in the Duenweg camp. The shafts have 
been known to be still thicker in the old Granby camp in 
the early days. 

Where such deposits are found and are worked out 
it is not at all uncommon for the miners to sink their 
shafts deeper and encounter blende ores below, or perhaps 
at the same level encounter calamine or silicate ores. In 
either instance such mining is often the forerunner of more 

62 



lasting mining and yet offers exceptional profits from the 
very first. Much of the preliminary prospecting of the 
district in the "free ore" class of deposits has been done 
in this way. 

There are some mines in the district that have scarcely 
a trace of lead in them, but the great majority of the sheet 
ground and disseminated ore bodies have a certain per- 
centage running from one ton of lead concentrate out of 
every six to nine tons of zinc blende. Since sheet ground 
mining has become so large a part of the district's activity, 
these camps have been furnishing a steady and growing 
production of lead. This fact has in it a very important 
bearing on the question of profitable operation during 
the periods of low prices for zinc ores. 

MAY BE THE PROFIT FACTOR. 

Take as an example a sheet ground mine where the 
cost of producing a tone of concentrate is $35 per ton. 
The mine produces six tons of zinc blende ores to one 
of lead. Its daily output is equal to six tons of zinc ore 
and one ton of lead ore. Let the price for zinc blende 
drop to $35, and so far as the plant's profit is concerned 
there is none on the zinc output. The lead ore may sell 
for $50 to $80 per ton, and having cost the same to pro- 
duce, leaves a net profit of $15 to $45 on the day's output. 
It was just this margin of extra profit on the lead pro- 
duced that kept many of the sheet ground mines at work 
during the recent panic when the price of zinc concen- 
trates dropped below the cost of production. When both 
ores are selling for practically the same price there is no 
such advantage, but the normal relation between lead and 
zinc ore shows a higher price for lead than zinc. 

It is for this reason that investors in zinc mining are 
also interested in lead mining. The two ores are so asso- 
ciated that it is necessary to take into consideration one 
when considering the other. It is also important to under- 
stand that the finding of lead ore in this district is usually 
only another added advantage which presents itself to in- 
vestors who desire to enter the zinc mining industry. 
Alone, lead mining offers inducements which appeal espe- 
cially to the prospector and small operator and is either 
alone or in association with zinc a large factor in contrib- 
uting to the importance and wealth of the Joplin district. 



63 



CHAPTER XVII 

"SILICATE" MINING IS VERY PROFITABLE. 

The mining of calamine or "silicate" ore in the Joplin 
district has never reached the proportions that the number 
and quality of the ore deposits of the district warranted. 
The field, while producing an enormous tonnage of ore 
yearly, has only about 11 to 12 per cent of its output 
made up of this class of ores. This means for 1909 28,681 
tons of silicate, as contrasted with 272,524 tons of blende. 
This contrast is reversed in the New Jersey, New Mexico 
and Old Mexico zinc productions. Yet the profits in 
mining this kind of zinc ore are very large and offer quick 
returns. For this reason the field is one that should re- 
ceive not only more attention from the small operator but 
from the capitalist who desires to secure profitable invest- 
ment for his money. 

DEMAND FOR CALAMINE ORE IS GROWING. 

The demand for silicate ores has become greater dur- 
ing the last few years. The zinc smelter has found that it 
is very advantageous to utilize the ore in connection with 
the smelting of the blende ores. A much better recovery 
is effected in the first place and in the second it diminishes 
the cost of smelting through the reduction of the amount 
of ores that have to be roasted previous to putting into 
the retorts. By judicious mixing of the calamine with 
the roasted blende the smelting practice is greatly im- 
proved. It also obviates the use of other materials in 
the making up of the charge which would not return any 
metal, while the calamine will. For these reasons the use 
of a certain percentage of this class of ores is highly de- 
sired and has grown in favor. During the years 1905, 
1906, 1907 and 1909 a very large tonnage was consumed 
which was imported from Mexico. This ore was in no 
respect any better than that produced in this district, 
and in many instances not so good, as it only averaged 
close to 40 per cent in metal, while the Joplin silicates 
often go above 45 per cent, and the average is more nearly 
43 per cent zinc. Besides, much of the Mexican calamine 
was carbonates of zinc, which ore is less desirable. The 
ore deposits of the district thus have a distinct advantage 
in this respect over their Mexican rivals, although handi- 
capped to a certain extent by the cheap labor existing in 

64 



Mexico. But this is now offset to a degree by the tariff 
of 1 per cent per pound on all ores over 25 per cent zinc. 

PRICE PAID IS VERY GOOD. 

That the demand for this class of ores is insistent 
is evident by the intense competition for them. The price 
paid is often higher in proportion than the base price on 
blende ores. For instance, calamine ores have been known 
to sell on a base of $30 for 40 per cent zinc when 60 
per cent zinc ores were only commanding $50. Or in other 
words, the calamine ores sold on what was equivalent to 
the same base as the 60 per cent grades. The very fact 
that the two ores normally are sold on a different basis 
shows that there is a differential in the proportionate 
values of the two ores, and when this differential is passed 
over the advantage of the calamine ores is more than self- 
evident. The calamine ores are sold on the basis of 40 
per cent zinc and the blende ores on the basis of 60 per 
cent zinc. 

The "silicate" camps in the district are well known 
for their low mining costs. They are so well known for 
this reason that they are proverbially called the "poor 
man's camps." The Granby camp in the southern end of 
the field holds the premier place as a producer of this ore. 
It has been the place where the poor men have always 
made good. It is said, and the saying is not far from being 
correct, that 90 per cent of the silicate mines in that camp 
have paid big dividends. The men who have opened them 
up put in only a small amount of capital. From the roy- 
alties paid by these small miners the Granby Mining and 
Smelting Company has obtained a large part of its ac- 
knowledged wealth. What is of still further importance, 
that camp is but in its infancy as far as its future de- 
velopment is concerned. 

Then in the east end of the district is Aurora, which 
has always held a close second to Granby in the output of 
its calamine ores. It is no less noted as a place for profit- 
able mining, and the silicate miner, as he is termed, is 
among the most independent and well-to-do men in that 
camp. The basis of many of the fortunes made in that 
camp, as in others in this district, was made by first 
mining silicate. That camp, too, is far from being fully 
developed. It has had spasmodic periods of great activity, 
but the field is still largely virgin. 

What has been said of Granby and Aurora may be 
said of Joplin, Duenweg, Spring City, Spurgeon, Peoria, 
Sarcoxie and much of*the territory contiguous to Shoal 
creek, in smaller degree. But in every instance the cost 
of mining such ores is very small as compared with the 
majority of the blende ore mines. It, therefore, forms a 
field of development of its own and peculiarly appeals to 
the small investor; 

65 



DEPOSITS ARE GENERALLY SHALLOW. 

Such mining is for the most part shallow. No deep 
shafts necessitating heavy hoisting expense or heavy sink- 
ing charges are found. The shafts that are sunk are 
scarcely ever difficult ones owing to the open nature of 
the country rock in which this type of mining is carried 
on. The ground breaking is inexpensive for the same rea- 
son. It is largely a matter of following narrow runs of 
ore occuring in a soft clay or decomposed limestone or 
chert. Very little powder is needed for blasting and 
drilling is mostly confined to mere "spudding." No mining 
could be done at a smaller cost unless it was done on the 
surface, and this has been known in the district where it 
was but necessary to strip the soil and pick out the ore 
with pick and shovel. 

The cleaning and concentration of the ore is extreme- 
ly simply. Much of it can be done by hand picking. A 
large part of the ore can be so culled as it is taken out in 
the mine to give a good marketable product. The re- 
mainder may be cleaned in sluice boxes or in hand jigs. 
In some instances the ore may be concentrated on a milling 
plant, but in the majority of cases this is not necessary. 
Surely no mining and concentration could be done at 
smaller cost. Is it any wonder, then, that miners have 
been known to sell this ore at from $10 to $20 per ton 
and make money on the operation? If this could be done, 
how much greater profit there is with the ore commanding 
from $26 to $37 per ton? 

ROOM FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENT. 

But there is room for still greater development in 
every camp. From the work already done in the district 
the favorable localities are already outlined and much of 
the preliminary work in prospecting accomplished. The 
field is open not only to the small independent miner but 
it needs the introduction of some capital for the more diffi- 
cult propositions. These propositions offer good returns. 
Take as an instance the old Beckham mine in the Granby 
camp. This mine has been worked almost constantly for 
eight years as a hand-jig and hand-picking proposition. 
Its rough ore has been sold to a custom plant. It was 
worked entirely by small operators. Had they put up a 
concentrating plant or had the mine been in the hands 
of a man with sufficient capital to put in a concentrating 
plant from the very start its profits would have been much 
larger. The present Fortune Teller mine in the Granby 
camp is an instance where the introduction of sufficient 
capital to put up a mill has proved to be immensely profit- 
able. Of the many opportunities left in this district none 
have greater possibilities than silicate mining. 

66 



CHAPTER XVIII 

SHEET GROUND MINING ELIMINATES 
SPECULATION. 

The future production of the district seems destined 
to come largely from the sheet ground and disseminated 
ore deposits. Even at the present time the bulk of the 
ores is coming from that class of mines. Webb City, Car- 
terville, Oronogo, Prosperity, Porto Rico and part of the 
mines at Duenweg are furnishing ores almost exclusively 
from this kind of ground. The newer mines west of Joplin 
belong to the disseminated deposits. With such a showing 
at present anything said of the future of the district would 
not be covering the outlook fully if it did not take into 
consideration sheet ground mining. 

The experience of the past few years has demonstrated 
a number of things in regard to mining this class of ores. 
Some of those features are more promising than others, 
but taken as a whole they mean .that the bulk of the ores 
in the future, as now, will come from the sheet ground. 
During the past two years of hard times it was demon- 
strated that mines on this type of ground had a narrow 
margin for operation, and as a result there were more of 
these mines shut down than any other type. Yet with all 
this, their tonnage of ore was still heavy. It would seem 
from this experience that, despite the heavy blow dealt to 
low per cent ores, they held their own remarkably well 
even under the most adverse conditions. 

BIGGER SHEET GROUND AREA DEVELOPED. 

The amount of land now available for sheet ground 
mining has been increased very greatly in the Webb City 
district. Both north and south of that camp the develop- 
ment has been of such importance as to make that camp 
and its surroundings the premier producer of both zinc 
and lead. Practically 80 per cent of the ores coming from 
that camp is produced from sheet ground, and this alone 
shows the importance which this class of mining has at- 
tained. Being the pioneer in the development of sheet 
ground, it has also claimed the first place in the produc- 
tion columns on that basis. It has also paved the way for 
the successful operation of this class of mine, and its min- 
ing practice has been the base's for the further extension 

67 



of this type of mining in other camps. Since the develop- 
ment in Webb City other camps have also taken up this 
type of mining, or its application to disseminated ore de- 
posits, until the future of the district is largely wrapped 
up in the exploitation of this kind of mining. The extent 
to which it may be carried on from the present develop- 
ment represents work for several decades. 

Sheet ground mining, or mining of disseminated ores, 
means that an ore of only 2 to 5 per cent must be han- 
dled. It means that the mining cost will be very heavy, 
due to ground breaking being entirely dependent on ma- 
chine drilling and heavy blasting. It means usually deeper 
mining than the "soft ground" deposits and consequent 
higher hoisting costs as well as initial cost of shaft sink- 
ing. It means also the handling of an ore body with a 
small ore face, running from six to fourteen feet, with an 
average near ten feet in the sheet ground areas and six to 
thirty feet in the disseminated deposits. In the dissemi- 
nated deposits the face is usually much higher than in 
the sheet ground, with the consequent advantages in 
ground breaking. But in both classes of deposits the aver- 
age content of the ore is usually not over 3 to 3% per cent 
zinc and lead. 

PERMANENCY OF DEPOSITS ONE GREAT FACTOR. 

It is evident that the above facts represent difficult 
conditions unless they are offset by more favorable ones. 
The one great factor in making such mining attractive 
lies in the permanency of the deposits and their wide dis- 
tribution over large areas of ground. For this reason, 
capital, both local and foreign, has found in this type of 
mining a closer approximation to manufacturing conditions 
than to speculative mining. For instance, drilling might 
reveal that an entire 160-acre tract is underlaid with a 
seven-foot face of 3 per cent zinc ore. The known uni- 
formity of the conditions makes it practically possible to 
demonstrate ahead of operations just what kind of a 
mining proposition is in hand. 

With the area, the percentage of ore, the height of 
face and character of ore known, it then becomes a prob- 
lem of the size and kind of mill to handle most economi- 
cally the proposition. The milling cost must be kept 
within bounds by large units of operation. This means 
large mills. The small percentage of concentrate in the 
ore means good milling practice or the proposition is a 
failure, which necessitates not only large mills, but mills 
built with all the necessary accessories for the best milling 
practice. 

QUESTION OF MANAGEMENT IS PARAMOUNT. 

In such mining, success depends more upon good man- 
agement and business sagacity than in any other type of 

68 



mining. It becomes a matter of adjusting production cost 
to the point which is low enough to produce a profit when 
the product is sold. The speculative element in mining in 
this class of operations in the Joplin district is reduced to 
the minimum. The profits are not so large in individual 
instances, but the elimination of the speculative element is 
a great compensation, and even if the profits are smaller 
their practical assurance over a term of years makes in- 
vestment in sheet ground or .disseminated mining very at- 
tractive to the conservative investor. 

The development of the district in the future is ap- 
parently going to be more conservative. Experience has 
taught that the essentials of success lie in conservative 
methods. For that reason sheet ground mining grew very 
rapidly when the facts were all made clear in the early 
experiments. It was found that the initial investigation 
had to be carried on just as carefully in the development 
of this class of deposits as any other. It was found that 
the initial investment was much heavier in doing the de- 
velopment work. The investment in putting up a con- 
centrating plant was also demonstrated to be much greater 
than the earlier mining demanded. It was also found that 
mining and milling costs were proportionately higher, but 
it was also found out that the permanence of the deposit, 
coupled with good management, meant profitable mining 
minus the speculative element. In other words, such 
mining comes very close to paralleling manufacturing in- 
dustries where the cost of production can be figured, to- 
gether with the supply at hand, and the investment made 
entirely on conservative grounds. 

INDUCEMENT TO CONSERVATIVE INVESTORS. 

When these facts become more generally known, the 
matter of marketing Joplin mining stocks should not prove 
such a difficult matter with the conservative investor or 
even the ultra-conservative investor. What the investor 
desires is a return on his capital, coupled with reasonable 
assurance of its return to him unimpaired. Since sheet 
ground mining done wisely and under competent manage- 
ment eliminates the speculative element in that class of 
mines, such mining securities not only present safe invest- 
ments but investments which under normal conditions re- 
turn good dividends. It would seem therefore that in the 
future this class of mines should receive a great deal of 
attention from the outside investor because in them he can 
see more readily safety and profit for his capital without 
a long acquaintance with the district, while the older and 
more experienced in the field will find profit in other 
classes of mining which still have some element of specu- 
lation in them. For the district's welfare, however, it is 
well that outside investments be made in the more con- 
servative and safer class of securities. 

69 



CHAPTER XIX 

DISCOVERY OF DEEPER ORE LEVEL DOUBLES DIS- 
TRICT'S IMPORTANCE. 

The recognition of a lower run of ores in the Joplin 
district due to work in several different camps has meant 
as much for the district during the last year as the growth 
of these same camps in lateral extent. Indeed, if the de- 
velopment of these ore bodies proves that there is a wide 
distribution of this lower run, the future life of [he dis- 
trict will be more than doubled and its importance will be 
greatly enhanced. 

The work so far done establishes the presumption that 
there exist large untouched ore reserves below the level 
hitherto supposed to be the limit of ore deposition. This 
means a new life for every tract of ground in the district. 
Jt means that prospecting will now include in the possi- 
bilities of new productive territory every foot of ground 
in the confines of the district, whether it has been consid- 
ered work out or condemned as barren by too shallow pros- 
pect drilling. No discovery or movement has meant quite 
so much to the welfare and future of the Joplin district 
as this discovery of a deeper level of ore. > 

DEEPER ORE LEVEL IS NOW ESTABLISHED. 

This deeper level has been recognized by a number of 
the district's operators for some time, and its development 
at Cave Springs in the Herald mine and north of Empire 
in the Ihlseng shaft on the Ping and Robertson lands has 
had the careful attention of those interested in this new 
feature. The drilling was accepted as something rather 
surprising, and only with the sinking of the shafts below 
the level of the ore deposits was the truth of the discovery 
established. The first shaft into the ore was the incline 
of the Herald. This found ore in the regular ore levels of 
the Grand Falls chert at 180 feet, but passing on encoun- 
tered the ore below 220 feet in a limestone lying below the 
Grand Falls chert. The ore is a disseminated variety of 
good quality. At first this discovery was looked upon as 
freakish, but being followed by the second shaft showing 
identical conditions at the Ihlseng property, the drill rec- 
ords of other holes showing ore bodies at that level began 
to be received as positive evidence of the existence of a 
lower run of ore which may be more generally distributed 
when additional drilling has been done to that depth 
than is at present demonstrated. 

The drill holes which indicate the existence of a gen- 
eral distribution of this lower run of disseminated ore are 

70 



widely scattered, being found at Springfield on the extreme 
east to Quapaw on the extreme southwest. The holes are 
distributed in the camps of the three .states of Missouri, 
Kansas and Oklahoma. The actual developments are only 
at Cave Springs in Missouri and north of Empire in 
Kansas. 

C. E. SIEBENTHAL COMMENTS ON DISCOVERY. 

The recognition of this lower run of ore has at length 
been noted by the members of the United States geological 
survey, and in a recent advance chapter of the Mineral Re- 
sources of the United States, C. E. Siebenthal, who has 
done a great deal of very valuable geological work in the 
district, in speaking of the developments of the district, 
says : "The blanket deposits or 'sheet ground' are found 
in the Grand Falls chert, member of the Boone formation, 
at depths varying from 125 to 300 feet, depending upon the 
topography and geologic structure. Below this horizon 
there are, in the rocks of the Kinderhook age, deposits 
of disseminated ore. They have been struck in prospect 
shafts or drill holes near Springfield, Aurora, Granby, 
Carterville, Joplin, Hornet and Cave Springs in Missouri, 
at Galena in Kansas, and at Quapaw in Oklahoma." 

Taking up the subject of the development in the sep- 
arate camps, he says of the Herald mine at Cave Springs : 
"Ore is reported in sheet formation in blue flint (Grand 
Falls chert member of the Boone formation), between 180 
and 220 feet in depth, and between 222 and 290 feet in 
shaly limestone. The lower run of ore is at the same 
horizon as that struck in deep drilling north of Galena, 
and is, in part at least, in rocks of Kinderhook age." 

ADDITIONAL PROOF HAS BEEN FOUND. 

Speaking of the deep mining at the Ihlseng mine 
north of Galena in Kansas, Mr. Siebenthal becomes even 
more optimistic and says: "What promises to be a very 
important development of the year was the discovery of 
deep ore in drilling the Robertson and Ping tracts twd 
miles north of Galena. The ore was found below the 
Grand Falls chert member of the Boone formation, at what 
appears to be about the same horizon as that at which the 
ore body occurs in the Herald mine at Cave Springs. More 
recently ore is reported to have been struck in the same 
rocks on the Murphy land at Empire. The fact that these 
three occurrences are situated in a triangle, each about 
two miles from the others, offers encouragement to hope 
that the deposits at this horizon may develop considerable 
extent. A large shaft is being sunk on the division line 
of the Ping and Robertson lands, and, if results justify, 
a double mill will be built, a unit for the ore of each 
tract." 

Since the above was written by Mr. Siebenthal, the 

71 



shaft has been completed into the ore, fully verifying the 
drill records and establishing beyond a doubt the existence 
of the ore deposit. In addition the shaft on the Murphy 
land is well started. In addition to the data cited by Mr. 
Siebenthal on the deep ore levels, there were five drill 
holes south of Galena near Shoal creek which also showed 
this same level of ore in the same rocks. This should add 
still greater evidence of a wide extension of this class of 
deposits. 

THICKNESS OF DEPOSITS IS ABNORMAL. 

One of the features of the ore deposits found at the 
lower level is the exceptional thickness of the deposit as 
compared with the deposits in sheet ground. So far, the 
drill records at Cave Springs and in Kansas, both north 
and south of Galena, have shown the ore bodies to run 
almost invariably from near the 220-foot level to the 280 
to 300-foot level, giving a minimum thickness of 60 to 80 
feet. 

The degree of mineralization of the strata during this 
space varies, but such a large face of ore-bearing ground 
should help to maintain a low mining cost. In addition 
the ground-breaking should not be so difficult as in sheet 
ground, for the limestone in which the ore is disseminated 
is very soft and shaly and breaks easily. If this continues 
to be the rule this feature will offset to a certain degree 
the extra cost of deeper shaft and hoisting and make such 
mining more attractive. 

DISCOVERY DOUBLES DISTRICT'S EXTENT. 

The district has grown greatly in lateral extent during 
the past year, but this development of the deeper levels of 
ore promises to double the extent of the district within 
its old confines. It adds value to every tract of land in 
the mining field and reduces the hazard of investment by 
half, for it increases the prospector's opportunity to find 
ore at still another level. 

The discovery and development therefore means as 
much to future investments as it does to the district itself. 
While it is of great value to the district in increasing its 
wealth and importance, it is of still greater importance in 
the insurance of returns to the investor who enters the 
field as a developer of mineral lands. It means that if 
ore is not struck at 20, 30, 40, 50, 100, 200 feet, there is 
still an additional chance in the next hundred feet, and he 
who willfully pulls his drill before that hundred feet is 
tested passes by just as good opportunities in mining as 
he would if he did not drill at all. Surely the discovery 
of another deeper level is the greatest development for 
1909 in the Joplin district and is only another advantage 
offered to outside capital for investment. 

72 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

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